

Data visualization solution for a video game research
MIT Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Lab and Purdue University
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Research: Exploring How Preference and Perceived Performance Vary in Different Game Genres Across Time of Day
Authors: Dominic Kao and J.J. De Simone
Link: www.MIT.edu/kao2019fdg3.pdf
Authors: Dominic Kao and J.J. De Simone
Link: www.MIT.edu/kao2019fdg3.pdf
CCS Concepts: • Applied computing → Computer games; • Human-centered computing → Empirical studies in HCI
Publication year: 2019

Abstract: Time of day effects have been observed for the last five decades in cognitive tasks, athletic performance, and even ethical behavior.
However, in the context of games, little is known about how time of day influences preference or performance. We present a first study
(N=504) to explore how preference and perceived performance vary over the course of the day, by game genre. We find that the genres
First-Person Shooter and Other RPG are more popular at 6 p.m. to midnight. Conversely, the genres Puzzle and Board / Card were
less popular at 6 p.m. to midnight. However, 6 a.m. to noon is a more popular time for Puzzle and Board / Card. Performance-wise,
players feel they are more successful in First-Person Shooter games from 6 p.m. to midnight, and less successful at all other times. On
the other hand, players feel they are more successful in Puzzle games from 6 a.m. to noon, and less successful from 6 p.m. to midnight.
These inter-genre differences have a basis in the literature, which has postulated that cognitive function gradually declines throughout
the day, but that athletic performance peaks in the evening along with core body temperature.

Requirements: The main challenge of this project was to facilitate a comparative analysis integrating different variable categories: numerical, categorical and, temporal. Therefore, to combine the numbers, categories and the temporal variations, for this reason, a reinterpretation of the chronodex model was designed based on the next data:

Two dataVIZ schemes were designed to visualize the interactions among the variables, improving the level of the comparative analysis and communicating the data though an image with high functional and visual impact levels.


