Exergaming : its Social Aspects
Mahat, Sandhya (2019)
2019
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Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2019120223939
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:amk-2019120223939
Tiivistelmä
It is widely believed that exergaming solely has physical benefits. However, several studies have emphasized the social effects of exergaming recently. This thesis, hence, makes use of those existing studies and compares the social risks of exergaming with its benefits. For this, extensive research was conducted with different online sources. Moreover, the thesis uses qualitative analysis method to study the social aspect of the Exercise Monster developed by Turku Game Lab.
The game was tested on sixteen voluntary participants in Turku Game Lab. Each participant played the game at least four times. Each complete session lasted for twenty to thirty minutes which included individual interviews, four gameplays and group discussions. The results suggested that the game was successful to socially engage the players to a certain extent. Moreover, it was determined that an increase in the number of players increased their social interaction. However, there were certain limitations such as the limited number of participants, enclosed area, time, validity, technical issues and language bias. It was deduced that the social aspects of Exercise Monster could be improved by further developing the game with multiple VR players and other social features where the players would have to perform certain tasks together.
These results have provided Turku Game Lab with an insight into the social aspect of Exercise Monster and thus help in the further development of the game to make it more social.
The game was tested on sixteen voluntary participants in Turku Game Lab. Each participant played the game at least four times. Each complete session lasted for twenty to thirty minutes which included individual interviews, four gameplays and group discussions. The results suggested that the game was successful to socially engage the players to a certain extent. Moreover, it was determined that an increase in the number of players increased their social interaction. However, there were certain limitations such as the limited number of participants, enclosed area, time, validity, technical issues and language bias. It was deduced that the social aspects of Exercise Monster could be improved by further developing the game with multiple VR players and other social features where the players would have to perform certain tasks together.
These results have provided Turku Game Lab with an insight into the social aspect of Exercise Monster and thus help in the further development of the game to make it more social.