Hi,

I’m trying to develop a set of guidelines, a starting point for debate if you like, regarding how to develop emotionally adaptive computer games for my PhD. The concept behind such games is very simple; keep the player more entertained, for longer. Should she get bored whilst playing, introduce some new and fun elements to the game to heighten her interest. If she is getting too stressed to enjoy playing the game, make the game calm down a little, allowing her to relax and enjoy the experience. As part of my PhD project I have already developed such a game. It uses physiology in conjunction with gaming context to determine the player’s changing emotional state, and adapts accordingly. The game I’ve developed is called TEDDI (Transient Emotion Detecting Designed Interface), and is a Minesweeper style game with some role playing game elements introduced. Think PuzzleQuest, but with Minesweeper, and two boards rather than just the one.

The reason I’m starting this blog is so that all you gamers out there can help me develop my set of guidelines. I’m really looking for your input, any thoughts you may have regarding the big picture of this, or more specifically on the topics of a particular post. Any thoughts/ideas that end up in my thesis will be referenced appropriately, I’m not out to steal your ideas! However, getting expert gamers thoughts will increase the credibility of my work, so I really need you guys!

This post is really only to introduce my blog, more specifics will come later. I’ll probably update this a few times a week from now on. If you have any questions, put them out there, and I’ll try my best to answer. If I don’t have the answer, perhaps someone else does, or perhaps it’s a point we should discuss!

See you next time!

Irene