Activity and Accessibility in Digital Games

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Active games represent the next revolution in digital entertainment. In active games, players control gameplay using physical activity, rather than through clicking buttons on a controller. Select commercial games have shown the potential of active games, including dancing games such as Ubisoft's Just Dance, sports games such as Nintendo's Wii Sports, and Niantic's augmented reality walking game Pokémon Go. Active games can increase immersion in games, allowing the player to feel more present in the virtual world as their physical actions directly influence gameplay, rather than being mediated by a game controller. Active games can contribute to anti-sedentary behaviour, requiring people to engage in physical activity to play - and active games can provide an outlet for physical activity for persons with motor disabilities. Active games are supported by emerging hardware for motion and activity tracking, ranging from smartphone-based location and heart rate sensors, through room-scale motion trackers for virtual and augmented reality. The time is right to support physical activity in games.******As yet, however, foundational knowledge is lacking on how to best merge activity and digital gameplay. Current active games are simple, lacking the depth that contributes to long-term play. Attempts to carry traditional game mechanics to active games often fail, as they can be hard to use by people who are physically exerting.******We propose to research design techniques and algorithms for harmoniously merging physical activity with digital gameplay. We will examine how traditional game mechanics can be dynamically adjusted to allow them to be used when people are exerting. We will design and evaluate novel game mechanics which fulfil the role of traditional mechanics while integrating well with exercise. We will investigate game balancing techniques which allow persons with motor disabilities to play active games, ultimately allowing persons with disabilities to play with their typically-developing friends.