Zeyuan Zhang
ABSTRACT
Prior game researchers mostly focused on designing the ”macro” context which requires a decent proportion of time to engage and play, from which players may benefit. However, the demanding time and effort restrict playability during working hours. To our knowledge, there is little research exploring game design in a manner that enables momentary detachment from primary work for a mind refreshment and effortlessly resumes the suspended work after playing. In this paper, we propose a novel micro-game concept that enables the gamification of micro-breaks within working hours. To examine our concept, we adapted a conventional water-ring game into an interactive prototype, InterRings, which empowers users to play with handy objects. Our mixed observational studies and interviews revealed high acceptability and feasibility of the micro-game concept. Conclusively, three design guidelines are summarised for future development of micro-games.
- [n.d.]. Running dinosaur Game - Chrome Web Store. https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/running-dinosaur-game/nihmppmidbbbkfademfpjmhhogegjbjd. (Accessed on 02/20/2021).Google Scholar
- [n.d.]. Star Wars: Tales from the Galaxy’s Edge. https://www.oculus.com/experiences/quest/3484270071659289. (Accessed on 02/20/2021).Google Scholar
- [n.d.]. Teachable Machine. https://teachablemachine.withgoogle.com/. (Accessed on 01/02/2021).Google Scholar
- Espen Aarseth, Solveig Marie Smedstad, and Lise Sunnanå. 2003. A multidimensional typology of games.. In DiGRA Conference.Google Scholar
- Vasundhara Agrawal, Varnika Naik, Mayuri Duggirala, and Sandeep Athavale. 2020. Color Me: A Game based on Art Therapy for Mental Health. In Extended Abstracts of the 2020 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play. 158–162.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Thomas H Apperley. 2006. Genre and game studies: Toward a critical approach to video game genres. Simulation & Gaming 37, 1 (2006), 6–23.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Liam Bannon, Allen Cypher, Steven Greenspan, and Melissa L Monty. 1983. Evaluation and analysis of users’ activity organization. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 54–57.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Damon Brown. 2006. Playing to win: Video games and the fight against obesity. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 106, 2(2006), 188–189.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Paul Ed Cairns and Anna L Cox. 2008. Research methods for human-computer interaction.Cambridge University Press.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Emily Collins and Anna L Cox. 2014. Switch on to games: Can digital games aid post-work recovery?International Journal of Human-Computer Studies 72, 8-9 (2014), 654–662.Google Scholar
- Anna L Cox, Sandy JJ Gould, Marta E Cecchinato, Ioanna Iacovides, and Ian Renfree. 2016. Design frictions for mindful interactions: The case for microboundaries. In Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. 1389–1397.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Douglas Easterly and Angela Blachnitzky. 2009. UbiBall: A Ubiquitous Computing Game for Children. Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.1145/1621841.1621850Google ScholarDigital Library
- Christian Elverdam and Espen Aarseth. 2007. Game Classification and Game Design: Construction Through Critical Analysis. Games and Culture 2, 1 (2007), 3–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412006286892 arXiv:https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412006286892Google ScholarCross Ref
- Alex Frazer, David Argles, and Gary Wills. 2007. Is less actually more? The usefulness of educational mini-games. In Seventh IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies (ICALT 2007). IEEE, 533–537.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Tim Gabbett, David Jenkins, and Bruce Abernethy. 2009. Game-based training for improving skill and physical fitness in team sport athletes. International Journal of Sports Science & Coaching 4, 2 (2009), 273–283.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Victor M González and Gloria Mark. 2004. ” Constant, constant, multi-tasking craziness” managing multiple working spheres. In Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems. 113–120.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Lindsay Grace, G Tanner Jackson, Christopher Totten, Julian Parker, and Joyce Rice. 2015. Designing microgames for Assessment: A case study in rapid prototype iteration. In Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on Advances in Computer Entertainment Technology. 1–4.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Lindsay D Grace. 2012. Making and analyzing games: not as art, but as literature. In Proceeding of the 16th International Academic MindTrek Conference. 237–240.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Stephanie Heintz and Effie Lai-Chong Law. 2015. The Game Genre Map: A Revised Game Classification. In Proceedings of the 2015 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (London, United Kingdom) (CHI PLAY ’15). Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA, 175–184. https://doi.org/10.1145/2793107.2793123Google ScholarDigital Library
- Ioanna Iacovides, Anna L Cox, Patrick McAndrew, James Aczel, and Eileen Scanlon. 2015. Game-play breakdowns and breakthroughs: exploring the relationship between action, understanding, and involvement. Human–computer interaction 30, 3-4 (2015), 202–231.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Klaus P Jantke. 2006. Games that do not exist communication design beyond the current limits. In Proceedings of the 24th annual ACM international conference on Design of communication. 35–42.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Dagmar Kern, Mark Stringer, Geraldine Fitzpatrick, and Albrecht Schmidt. 2006. Curball–a prototype tangible game for inter-generational play. In 15th IEEE International Workshops on Enabling Technologies: Infrastructure for Collaborative Enterprises (WETICE’06). IEEE, 412–418.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Sooyeol Kim, YoungAh Park, and Qikun Niu. 2017. Micro-break activities at work to recover from daily work demands. Journal of Organizational Behavior 38, 1 (2017), 28–44.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Simone Kühn, Tobias Gleich, Robert C Lorenz, Ulman Lindenberger, and Jürgen Gallinat. 2014. Playing Super Mario induces structural brain plasticity: gray matter changes resulting from training with a commercial video game. Molecular psychiatry 19, 2 (2014), 265–271.Google Scholar
- Gierad Laput, Karan Ahuja, Mayank Goel, and Chris Harrison. 2018. Ubicoustics: Plug-and-Play Acoustic Activity Recognition. Association for Computing Machinery, New York, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.1145/3242587.3242609Google ScholarDigital Library
- Kate E. Lee, Kathryn J.H. Williams, Leisa D. Sargent, Nicholas S.G. Williams, and Katherine A. Johnson. 2015. 40-second green roof views sustain attention: The role of micro-breaks in attention restoration. Journal of Environmental Psychology 42 (2015), 182 – 189. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvp.2015.04.003Google ScholarCross Ref
- Tsung-Yu Liu and Yu-Ling Chu. 2010. Using ubiquitous games in an English listening and speaking course: Impact on learning outcomes and motivation. Computers & Education 55, 2 (2010), 630 – 643. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compedu.2010.02.023Google ScholarDigital Library
- Kalle Lyytinen and Youngjin Yoo. 2002. Ubiquitous computing. Commun. ACM 45, 12 (2002), 63–96.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Tony Manninen. 2002. Contextual virtual interaction as part of ubiquitous game design and development. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing 6, 5-6 (2002), 390–406.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Javier Marco, Eva Cerezo, and Sandra Baldassarri. 2009. Evaluating a tangible game video console for kids. In IFIP Conference on Human-Computer Interaction. Springer, 141–144.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Henry Mintzberg. 2019. Structured observation as a method to study managerial work. Journal of (2019).Google ScholarCross Ref
- Chris T Panagiotakopoulos. 2011. Applying a Conceptual Mini Game for Supporting Simple Mathematical Calculation Skills: Students’ Perceptions and Considerations.World Journal of Education 1, 1 (2011), 3–14.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Leonard Reinecke. 2009. Games at work: The recreational use of computer games during working hours. CyberPsychology & Behavior 12, 4 (2009), 461–465.Google ScholarCross Ref
- Kay Römer and Svetlana Domnitcheva. 2002. Smart playing cards: A ubiquitous computing game. Personal and Ubiquitous Computing 6, 5-6 (2002), 371–377.Google ScholarDigital Library
- Jeffrey Rzeszotarski, Ed Chi, Praveen Paritosh, and Peng Dai. 2013. Inserting micro-breaks into crowdsourcing workflows. In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Human Computation and Crowdsourcing, Vol. 1.Google ScholarCross Ref
- José-Manuel Sáez-López Sáez-López, M Luisa Sevillano-García Sevillano-García, M Ángeles Pascual-Sevillano Pascual-Sevillano, José-Manuel Sáez-López, María Luisa Sevillano-García-García, and María de los Ángeles Pascual-Sevillano. 2019. Application of the ubiquitous game with augmented reality in Primary Education. Comunicar. Media Education Research Journal 27, 2 (2019).Google ScholarCross Ref
- Peter A Smith and Alicia Sanchez. 2010. Mini-games with major impacts. In Serious game design and development: Technologies for training and learning. IGI Global, 1–12.Google Scholar
- Stan W. Smith. 2010. An experiment in bibliographic mark-up: Parsing metadata for XML export. In Proceedings of the 3rd. annual workshop on Librarians and Computers(LAC ’10, Vol. 3), Reginald N. Smythe and Alexander Noble (Eds.). Paparazzi Press, Milan Italy, 422–431. https://doi.org/99.9999/woot07-S422Google Scholar
- John P Trougakos and Ivona Hideg. 2009. Momentary work recovery: The role of within-day work breaks. In Current perspectives on job-stress recovery. Emerald Group Publishing Limited.Google Scholar
- Matthew Wilkinson and Caitlin Demsky. 2016. Micro Breaks.Google Scholar
- Hannes Zacher, Holly A Brailsford, and Stacey L Parker. 2014. Micro-breaks matter: A diary study on the effects of energy management strategies on occupational well-being. Journal of Vocational Behavior 85, 3 (2014), 287–297.Google ScholarCross Ref
- X. Zhai, Y. Dong, and J. Yuan. 2018. Investigating Learners’ Technology Engagement - A Perspective From Ubiquitous Game-Based Learning in Smart Campus. IEEE Access 6(2018), 10279–10287. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2018.2805758Google ScholarCross Ref
Index Terms
- InterRings: Towards Understanding Design Micro-games to Fit Daily Work Routine
Index terms have been assigned to the content through auto-classification.
Recommendations
Towards understanding how to design for social play in exertion games
Players invest significant physical effort when playing exertion games. In addition to improving physical health, exertion games are also believed to facilitate social play amongst players. Despite these advantages, our understanding of how to design ...
Towards understanding balancing in exertion games
ACE '14: Proceedings of the 11th Conference on Advances in Computer Entertainment TechnologyPlaying exertion games with others can be engaging. However, players with different physical skill levels competing against each other can experience reduced engagement because they are either not challenged enough, or challenged too much. Balancing ...
The cost of interrupted work: more speed and stress
CHI '08: Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing SystemsWe performed an empirical study to investigate whether the context of interruptions makes a difference. We found that context does not make a difference but surprisingly, people completed interrupted tasks in less time with no difference in quality. Our ...
Comments