Read the manual before using the interface. (Kinect Adventures) (Yes, it’s a *cute* manual, but these are still instructions to memorize.) Summary: Inconsistent gestures, invisible commands, overlooked warnings, awkward dialog confirmations. But fun to play. Kinect is a new video game system that is fully controlled by bodily movements. It’s vaguely similar to the Wii,
Konami recently sent us a copy of their new title, Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. After testing the game, it was clear that the game could be a case study to highlight the difference between usability and user-experience (UX).
As a fan of football games, going back to the days of classics like Tecmo Bowl (NES), we were excited to play this year’s redesign of the successful Madden NFL series. We can report that Madden NFL ’11 is the most realistic, graphically stunning, and holistic football simulation to date. However, the new “GameFlow” play
2010 appears to be a breakthrough year for gaming technologies. In case you haven’t heard, Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft, and many others in the gaming industry have just announced their latest releases at this year’s E3 Expo in Los Angeles. The E3 press conferences revealed trends toward motion-based game controllers, 3D technologies, controller-less gaming, and an
Matthew Sharritt, President of Situated Research, has an article titled “Designing Game Affordances to Promote Learning and Engagement” appearing in a special issue of the Cognitive Technology Journal. The issue, focusing on “Games for Good”, contains our article (starting on p. 43).
A critique of a common method used in video game usability research Many video game usability practitioners employ a method to test usability within video games, called the ‘RITE’ method, short for Rapid Iterative Testing and Evaluation (RITE). Pioneered at Microsoft Games Studios and Microsoft Research, the RITE method has been adopted by many usability
Sid Meier is known as the mastermind behind some of the most respected and influential video games of all time, such as Civilization, Railroad Tycoon and Pirates. But in his pursuit of conveying a realistic experience for players, he says his logical mind wasn’t taking into account enough what was going on in players’ heads.
