Leif Oppermann

The multimedia challenges raised by pervasive games

Pervasive gaming is a new form of multimedia entertainment that extends the traditional computer gaming experience out into the real world. Through a combination of personal devices, positioning systems and other multimedia sensors, combined with wireless networking, a pervasive game can respond to a players movements and context and enable them to communicate with a game server and other players. We review recent examples of pervasive games in order to explain their distinctive characteristics as multimedia applications. We then consider the challenge of scaling pervasive games to include potentially very large numbers of players. We propose a new approach based upon a campaign model in which individuals, local groups and experts draw on a combination of pervasive games, online services and broadcasting to take part in national or even global events. We discuss the challenges that this raises for further research.

Tidy city: a location-based game supported by in-situ and web-based authoring tools to enable user-created content

This paper presents the location-based game Tidy City and the accompanying authoring tools that enable users to create new scavenger hunt like missions. In the game the players need to physically explore their city by interpreting clues to find the correct target destination. The in-situ authoring tool Tidy City Scout enables designers to likewise walk around the city and collecting notes, images and GPS data for potential riddles. The riddles are finalized in a web-based authoring tool and then published to all players of the game. The game and its tools are freely accessible for non-commercial purposes at http://totem.fit.fraunhofer.de/tidycity.

Subjective and behavioral presence measurement and interactivity in the collaborative augmented reality game TimeWarp

Presence is usually assessed via a variety of subjective and objective measures. However, constraints often result in subjective measurements using questionnaires as a key method of data collection. In this paper we present a study of 44 participants of a collaborative augmented reality game known as TimeWarp which used both subjective and objective behavioral measures. Behavior as coded from video recordings of one scene of the game and self-reports about feelings of presence were compared. Our findings indicate that pointing behavior and verbal responses to the virtual content are correlated negatively to sense of presence. We further investigated the influence of subjectively perceived interactivity on perceived presence. We found that the interaction possibilities perceived by the participants predicted their experience of social presence with the virtual characters in the game. Furthermore, playing together with another person did not result in decreased social presence of the virtual characters. Implications for presence research are discussed.

The final TimeWarp: using form and content to support player experience and presence when designing location-aware mobile augmented reality games

Designing Augmented Reality location aware games requires an understanding of how form and content issues impact on presence. A study of 60 players was conducted using questionnaires, video analysis and interviews. The results indicate that content including: moral dilemmas, strong narratives, using real locations effectively and applying simple physical behavior within virtual characters to improve embodiment have a positive impact on player experience. The results are presented in the form of guidelines.

Extending authoring tools for location-aware applications with an infrastructure visualization layer

In current authoring tools for location-aware applications the designer typically places trigger zones onto a map of the target environment and associates these with events and media assets. However, studies of deployed experiences have shown that the characteristics of the usually invisible ubiquitous computing infrastructure, especially limited coverage and accuracy, have a major impact on an experience. We propose a new approach in which designers work with three layers of information: information about the physical world, information about digital media, but also visualizations of ubiquitous infrastructure. We describe the implementation of a prototype authoring tool that embodies this approach and describe how it has been used to author a location-based game for mobile phones called Tycoon. We then outline the key challenges involved in generalizing this approach to more powerful authoring tools including acquiring and visualizing infrastructure data, acquiring map data, and flexibly specifying how digital content relates to both of these.

Designing Mobile Augmented Reality Games

In the gaming area, augmented reality (AR) and especially mobile augmented reality provides unique opportunities. Unlike traditional video games, mobile augmented reality games are not imprisoned in the screen-space but provide for interaction with the world that surrounds us. They incorporate real locations and objects into the game, therefore tapping into a set of pre-existing thoughts, emotions and real-life experiences of its players, which in turn provides the material for a much richer gaming world and user experience. In mobile augmented reality games the playing area becomes borderless and they can be played literally anywhere and anytime. The current advancement of modern cell phone technology is finally giving more people than ever the hardware necessary to participate and experience such games.

Locating experience: touring a pervasive performance

Touring location-based experiences is challenging, as both content and underlying location services must be adapted to each new setting. A study of a touring performance called Rider Spoke as it visited three different cities reveals how professional artists developed a novel approach to these challenges in which users drove the co-evolution of content and the underlying location service as they explored each new city. We show how the artists iteratively developed filtering, survey, visualization, and simulation tools and processes to enable them to tune the experience to the local characteristics of each city. Our study reveals how by paying attention to both content and infrastructure issues in tandem, the artists were able to create a powerful user experience that has since toured to many different cities.

Playing on AREEF: evaluation of an underwater augmented reality game for kids

This paper reports on a study of AREEF, a multi-player Underwater Augmented Reality (UWAR) experience for swimming pools. Using off-the-shelf components combined with a custom made waterproof case and an innovative game concept, AREEF puts computer game technology to use for recreational and educational purposes in and under water. After an experience overview, we present evidence gained from a user-centred design-process including a pilot study with 3 kids and a final evaluation with 36 kids. Our discussion covers technical findings regarding marker placement, tracking, and device handling, as well as design related issues like virtual object placement and the need for extremely obvious user interaction and feedback when staging a mobile underwater experience.

AREEF Multi-player Underwater Augmented Reality experience

This paper reports on AREEF, the worlds first multi-player Under Water Augmented Reality (UWAR) experience. The underlying mission of this work was to bring computer games and entertainment applications from traditional settings into the water using Augmented Reality (AR) technology. We provide an application overview and present findings from our participatory design process that involved engineers and designers, as wells as end-users and water-park experts. The paper closes with a brief discussion of technical aspects that relate to Wi-Fi communication and computer vision tracking, and provides an outlook for future work.

TOTEM.Scout: A mobile tool for in-situ creation of location-based content

This paper presents a user-study of the TOTEM.Scout mobile tool that has been developed for in-situ creation of location-based content for games and edutainment applications based on configurable data templates. It works in cooperation with the TOTEM.Designer web-based tool and enables convenient structuring, management and export of the created content to prepare arbitrary location-based experiences. We motivate the necessity of this tool as well as its architecture, and describe the layout, results and findings of the performed case study in a real context of use. The results provide insights into possible improvements in terms of user interface and the tools functionality design, and suggest new features for data collection and management.