Die Gute Fabrik- mutazione

RESEARCH METHODS

- Semi-structured Interviews

- Surveys

- Think-Aloud Protocol

TOOLS

- Morae Eye-tracker

- PANAS Worksheet

OBJECTIVE

- To understand if players understand the core mechanic of the game. 

- To determine which dialogue system works best for the narrative aspect of the game. 

PROCESS

Phase 1

This phase involved conducting playtest and following the think-aloud protocol. Each playtester was called in and I moderated the session. 

Questions about what they are doing in the game and what they plan to were asked to get an idea of what the playtester is perceiving from the game. 

This phase was followed by a semi-structured interview where players were asked questions about what they thought were supposed to do in the game.  

As a final step, we also conducted a survey where PANAS worksheets were used to know if the playtesters' experience was a positive one. 

Phase 2

This phase involved an eye-tracking study to determine which dialogue system works best for the game. As the game is a narrative game, it was important to know if the players are actually reading all the dialogues. 

A screen eye-tracker was used for each session and the videos were recorded for gaze replays. 

OUTCOMES

In Phase 1, we realized that the players understand the core mechanic of the game which was gardening. Although, they weren't able to find the necessary ingredients in the game to complete the core mechanic. 

The team decided to provide prompts to the player in order to guide the player. 

The semi-structured interviews helped us undrerstand the players' thought process. We compared it to the expected experience the developers and designers wanted out of the game. It helped the developers to know what the player was thinking during certain interactions. 

Through the surveys, we identifed that the overall experience of the game was a positive one. 

Through the eye-tracking data, the team could make a decision as to which dialogue system woks best for the game.