From a Social POV: The Impact of Point of View on Player Behavior, Engagement, and Experience in a Serious Social Simulation Game

Ruben Schlagowski, Frederick Herget, Niklas Heimerl, Maximilian Hammerl, Tobias Huber, Pamina Zwolsky, Jan Gruca, Elisabeth André

Abstract: Multiplayer games with social aspects vary widely regarding client design, e.g., point of view or camera perspective. While design paradigms usually arise from gold standards that are set by previously successful games in the industry, the impact of such paradigms is under-researched for games that serve as scientific instruments, e.g., to research social behavior. Intending to investigate how such games should be designed, we built two multiplayer clients with the same game logic, one using a first-person point of view, while the other includes a top-down camera perspective. Then, we conducted an online user study in which players tested these game clients in extensive multiplayer sessions. Analyzing speech time, in-game logs, questionnaires, and qualitative feedback, we look at the perspectives’ impact on player behavior, engagement, and game experience in a scientific or "serious games" context. In addition, we have made our designed game UNISON and both clients available as open source to facilitate future empirical social science research.