Paper Reading #18: Biofeedback game design: using direct and indirect physiological control to enhance game interaction

• Title: Biofeedback game design: using direct and indirect physiological control to enhance game interaction
• Reference Information:
• Lennart Erik Nacke, Michael Kalyn, Calvin Lough, and Regan Lee Mandryk. 2011. Biofeedback game design: using direct and indirect physiological control to enhance game interaction.  In <em>Proceedings of the 2011 annual conference on Human factors in computing systems</em> (CHI '11). ACM, New York, NY, USA,  103-112. DOI=10.1145/1978942.1978958 http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/1978942.1978958
• CHI '11 Proceedings of the 2011 annual conference on Human factors in computing systems 
• Author Bios:
• Lennart Erik Nacke is an assistant professor for HCI and Game Science at the Faculty of Business and Information Technology at University of Ontario Institute of Technology.
• Michael Kalyn is a first time ACM publisher with this article.
• Calvin Lough another first time publisher, from the University of Saskatchewan
• Regan Lee Mandryk is a professor at the Simon Fraser University.  This is his 36th publication in 12 years.
• Summary
• Hypothesis:
• The researchers hypothesized that they could increase the enjoyment of video games by utilizing physiological input as both direct and indirect input.
• Methods
• The researchers developed three different versions of a game, one as a control and two others that integrated physiological input.  
• Results
• The results were collected through open-ended survey questions.  These responses were then conglomerated to produce overall enjoyment charts.  Furthermore, the participants were asked to rate various aspects of the novelty of the inputs on a likert scale.  Many participants enjoyed input devices that were more 'natural', and did not feel 'like a controller'.
• Contents
• The researchers concluded that physiological inputs can add enjoyment to a video game experience.  The indirect controls were shown to be less enjoyable since they did not present the same 'instant feedback' that the direct controls did.  The more natural the mapping was between the input and the functionality, the greater the feature was enjoyed.  Finally, researchers believe that the indirect inputs can be used as a dramatic device.
• Discussion
• The researchers effectively demonstrated support for their hypothesis.  This paper, however, does not present anything dramatically different from what I've been expecting in the future of gaming.  Perhaps ironically, I'm the most interested in the indirect inputs being utilized as dramatic devices.  The 'background' aspects of a game really came to light one day when I was playing a first person shooter game.  Suddenly, I realized that my heart was beating at an alarming rate and then I realized that there was fantastic music on in the background.  Since then, I have really taken notice as to how the overall look or sound of a game enhances the overall experience.  Including indirect input could bring a very individualized experience to video games.  I can only imagine the changes that would happen in a stealth game if I started getting too nervous. 

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