Pervasive Games

Johnny Hopkins

April 9, 2007ITIS 6410 Ubiquitous Computing

Dr. Heather Richter

Video: Human Pacman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYtKR0SoBMU

Video: ZouMa 101

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NM4AA9DOq0w

Topics

What is a pervasive game? Types of games Papers:

Magerkurth (2005) Benford (2005) Walther (2005)

Pervasive Games: Definition

“Pervasive gaming implies the construction and enacting of augmented and and/or embedded game worlds that reside on the threshold between tangible and immaterial space, which may further include adaptronics, embedded software, and information systems in order to facilitate a 'natural' environment for gameplay that ensures the explicitness of computational procedures in a post-screen setting.” (Walther 2005)

Pervasive Games: Definition

Translation: Get the player away from the PC and put them in the real world.

Pervasive Games: Types

From Walther (2005): Mobile game Location-based game Ubiquitous game Virtual realities games Augmented reality/mixed reality Adaptronic games

Pervasive Games: Types

From Magerkurth (2005): Smart Toys Affective gaming Augmented tabletop games Location-aware

Pervasive Games: Examples

AR Quake Can You See Me Now Human Pacman Majestic (EA Games) Gangs of GDC (Game Developer's

Conference 2007-San Francisco)

Pervasive Games: Magerkurth

Magerkurth (2005) Gives an interview and overview of the field Genres and tools

Pervasive Games: Benford

Benford (2005) Briefer introduction to pervasive games

Pervasive Games: Walther

Walther (2005) Methodology paper Defines four axes of pervasive games

Distribution Mobility Persistence Transmediality

Defines three key units of pervasive games Game rules Game entities Game mechanics

Issues from the Papers

Architecture issues Collaboration issues Hardware issues Software issues Ethics

Questions

Could pervasive games be viable in a competitive gaming industry and market?

Could current game developement/design tools be used to create these games?

Does the concept of pervasive games fit with Weisner's vision of ubiquitous computing?

What about the impact of serious games on pervasive games?

How do we solve many of the infrastructure issues in pervasive gaming?