Article 3: Game
Usability Heuristics (PLAY) for Evaluating and Designing
Better Games: The Next Iteration
by
Heather
Desurvire
and
Charlotte Wiberg
Authors of the “Game Usability Heuristics (PLAY) for Evaluating and Designing Better
Games: The Next Iteration”
describes
their research finding of how game developers applying human-computer interaction
(HCI) principles in design. They have adapted a set of Heuristics for productivity
software to games. They presented the result at CHI 2004, Heuristics to Evaluate
Playability (HEP). Their follow-up study was focused on follow-up study focused on the
refined list, Heuristics of Playability (PLAY),
that can be applied earlier in game development as well as aiding developers
between formal usability/playability researches during the development cycle.
Based on the research from the game
research community, they gathered set of heuristics. They categorizes HEP
Heuristics into four areas: Game Play, Game Usability, Game Mechanics and Game
Story. They created there sets of questionnaires, one to correspond to each of
the three different dame genres (Action Adventure, FPS and RTS) also included questionnaires for high rank and
low rank games. From their analysis was able to identify a number of principles
that helped to differentiate between good and bad games.
I. Category 1:
Game play
A.
Heuristic: Enduring Play
B.
Heuristic: Challenge, Strategy and Pace
C.
Heuristic: Consistency in Game World
D.
Heuristic: Goals
E.
Heuristic: Variety of Players and Game Styles
F.
Heuristic: Players Perception of Control
II. Category 2: Coolness/Entertainment/Humor/Emotional Immersion
A. Heuristic: Emotional Connection
B.
Heuristic: Coolness/Entertainment
C.
Heuristic: Humor
D.
Heuristic: Immersion
III Category 3: Usability & Game Mechanics
A.
Heuristic:
Documentation/Tutorial
B.
Heuristic: Status and Score
C.
Heuristic: Game Provides
Feedback
D.
Heuristic: Terminology
E.
Heuristic: Burden On Player
F.
Heuristic: Screen Layout
G.
Heuristic: Navigation
H.
Heuristic: Error Prevention
I.
Heuristic: Game Story
Immersion