Our project, ARound.hear aims to create innovative tools of communication that can provide social entertainment to its users through access of ambient sound. We noticed that most audio-based games that are available in the mobile game market are instrumental games. Few non-instrumental audio-based mobile games can be found. We thus began working on the design of audio-based mobile games. This thesis will discuss the preliminary design of Ambee Planet, an audio-based mobile virtual pet game application in detail and explore its future potential.
Mobile games 'casual nature means that simple games are in demand, but a game that is too simple becomes boring. The goal of this thesis is to depict the design of an audio-based mobile virtual pet game that is simple, yet complicated enough to engage the mass market game users. The author of this thesis proposes to structure Ambee Planet's audio-based game design through three steps: first, creating an audio-based mobile virtual pet game through modifying the structure of a mobile typical virtual pet game, second, designing audio-based human-pet interactions and third, determining as well as implementing an appropriate level of challenge.
An interactive prototype was created in order to test whether the mobile virtual pet game design constructed using the concepts above would be able to effectively engage mass market users. The prototype's basic structure and its underlying theme remained the same as a typical virtual pet game. Three types of audiobased interactions, sound database real sounds input, human voice input and paired random output were implemented in the prototype. The International Hobo audience model groups game players in four categories: Hardcore Gamers, Testosterone Gamers, Lifestyle Gamers and Family Gamers. Thirteen users, selected from the four gamer types participated in the user testing sessions. The research results indicate positive response to the Ambee Planet's audio-based design from participants of all four gamer-type groups, of both genders and of all age groups. The results also indicate that the female audience is more fitting than the male audience because the female audience is more likely to respond to a virtual pet's emotional feedbacks than the male audience. Although Ambee Planet's game design was predicted to be incapable of engaging Hardcore Gamers who frequently play complex games that only skillful players may advance to the next level, the female Hardcore Gamer who participated in the test expressed strong interest in the game. Furthermore, although the author set out to determine the appropriate level of challenge for the game, the results indicate that implementing an appropriate level of game complexity may be more important than implementing an appropriate level of game challenge in a virtual pet game, where the goal of the game is to establish a relationship between a virtual pet and its owner.
Ambee Planet is an innovative tool of communication. It is a virtual pet game application that allows its users to interact with virtual pet characters through the use of sound. Though further developments are still needed, results of the research show that Ambee Planet's game design can effectively engage female mass market game users. It is a new tool of communication. It will make communication between a human and a virtual pet more enjoyable.
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