The use of artificial potential fields is beneficial in most two dimensional environments but they are bound by limitations. Introduction of the third dimension eradicates some of the limitations and brings about a set of new problems. If the emergent problems are solved then the new approach can give way to smarter helicopters and consequently a new game-play experience or possibly safer flight. This thesis aims to solve the emergent problems and proposes a new solution for guidance of autonomous helicopter agents in 3D games based on artificial potential fields. This new approach is compared to the most used alternative the A* pathfinding algorithm. Our experiments reveal that potential fields is a formidable alternative for navigation of helicopters. It can perform many times faster than the A* alternative and has lower rate of collision. / Neoaxis PFA

Museums are rich and complex learning experiences, using a variety of interactive approaches to engage their audiences. However, the largely unstructured nature of free-choice learning calls for alternative approaches that can effectively engage groups of school age students with diverse cultural backgrounds. In these informal learning spaces employing digital content, classroom-size student groups do not get adequate exposure to content and if they do, it is either through individual interactions with digital exhibits or in a passive style instruction offered by a museum docent to the whole group. This research aims to identify which elements of collocated group collaboration, virtual environments, and serious games can be leveraged for an enhanced learning experience for small and large groups of middle school students. We created a conceptual framework based on the Contextual Model of Learning in museums (John H. Falk and Dierking, 2000) and the most effective educational elements of Virtual Environments (VEs) and Serious Games, in order to increase engagement and social presence and facilitate learning. We then developed C-OLiVE (Collaborative Orchestrated Learning in Virtual Environments), an interactive virtual learning environment supporting group collaboration, which we used as a testbed to respond to our research questions. Our overall hypothesis is that synchronous, collocated, group collaboration will afford greater learning and an improved game experience compared to the conventional approaches used in these spaces so far. We ran three experiments and a case study with 790 students in private and public middle schools, summer camps, and museums both in the US and in Greece. Findings partly supported our hypothesis, mainly during our small group interaction experiments, in which simultaneous interaction of students was found to be associated with increased learning. Guidance of a passive experience was effective in facilitating the more cognitively challenged group of students in a Greek museum. Our audience interaction studies revealed increased retention of information two days after the game. Agency was found to significantly predict learning in all our studies. Engagement and social presence were mostly correlated with higher levels of involvement and agency in the game. / Ph. D.

<p>The objective of this Master's thesis is to study whether it is possible to create a versatile game engine that can be both application independent and easy to use. In order to study this issue, we have implemented a prototype game engine that supports 2D game development. The system includes predefined programming constructs in order to make game development faster and easier.The conclusion of this thesis work is that the presented problem, while theoretically possible to solve, would introduce too many practical problems during the game development. Furthermore, we conclude that growth in ease of use may limit the functionality of the engine.</p>

As mobile devices still have limited battery life, processing power, memory, and display size, they cannot yet execute gaming applications with the same fidelity and quality as their PC counterparts. In response, researchers have recently performed research with the goal of the real-time delivery of game content specifically to fit within mobile devices’ limitations. In this thesis, we present a novel approach to tackling the streaming of objects to mobile devices. Our goal is to reduce the number of objects subject to streaming from the server to the target devices, while not violating the user-defined limitations through an efficient, context-aware 3D object selection and prioritization scheme. We take advantage of the game context to stream only the most relevant objects. Our evaluations have shown that this technique not only leads to better performance in general, but also increases the gameplay experience by helping the player to achieve a higher score.

As mobile devices still have limited battery life, processing power, memory, and display size, they cannot yet execute gaming applications with the same fidelity and quality as their PC counterparts. In response, researchers have recently performed research with the goal of the real-time delivery of game content specifically to fit within mobile devices’ limitations. In this thesis, we present a novel approach to tackling the streaming of objects to mobile devices. Our goal is to reduce the number of objects subject to streaming from the server to the target devices, while not violating the user-defined limitations through an efficient, context-aware 3D object selection and prioritization scheme. We take advantage of the game context to stream only the most relevant objects. Our evaluations have shown that this technique not only leads to better performance in general, but also increases the gameplay experience by helping the player to achieve a higher score.

As mobile devices still have limited battery life, processing power, memory, and display size, they cannot yet execute gaming applications with the same fidelity and quality as their PC counterparts. In response, researchers have recently performed research with the goal of the real-time delivery of game content specifically to fit within mobile devices’ limitations. In this thesis, we present a novel approach to tackling the streaming of objects to mobile devices. Our goal is to reduce the number of objects subject to streaming from the server to the target devices, while not violating the user-defined limitations through an efficient, context-aware 3D object selection and prioritization scheme. We take advantage of the game context to stream only the most relevant objects. Our evaluations have shown that this technique not only leads to better performance in general, but also increases the gameplay experience by helping the player to achieve a higher score.

Context: Modern commercial computer games use a number of different stimuli to assist players in locating key objects in the presented Virtual Environment (VE). These stimuli range from visual to auditory, and are employed in VEs depending on several factors such as gameplay design and aesthetics. Objectives: This study compares three different localization aids in order to evaluate their effectiveness in VEs. Method: An experiment is carried out in which testplayers are tasked with using audio signals, visual input, as well as a combination of both to correctly identify objects in a virtual scene. Results: Results gained from the experiment show how long testplayers spent on tests which made use of different stimuli. Upon analyzing the data, it was found that that audio stimulus was the slowest localization aid, and that visual stimulus and the combination of visual and auditory stimulus were tied for the fastest localization aid. Conclusions: The study concludes that there is a significant difference in efficiency among different localization aids and VEs of varied visual complexity, under the condition that the testplayer is familiar with each stimuli. / 3D-ljud och visuella hjälpmedel är vanliga i moderna datorspel. I denna uppsats detaljeras en studie kring effektivitet vid använding av 3D-ljud och visuella hjälpmedel i tre-dimensionella miljöer. Studien använder sig av en experimentiell design där testspelare får sitta i ett datorspel-liknande upplägg och använda sig av visuella och auditoriska hjälpmedel för att identifiera objekt i dessa miljöer. Studien bekräftar att det finns en signifikant skillnad i effektivitet mellan olika visuella och auditoriska hjälpmedel i tre-dimensionella miljöer.

The objective of this Master's thesis is to study whether it is possible to create a versatile game engine that can be both application independent and easy to use. In order to study this issue, we have implemented a prototype game engine that supports 2D game development. The system includes predefined programming constructs in order to make game development faster and easier.The conclusion of this thesis work is that the presented problem, while theoretically possible to solve, would introduce too many practical problems during the game development. Furthermore, we conclude that growth in ease of use may limit the functionality of the engine.

Todays video games use diff erent aids to help players navigate and proceed in a 3D-environment. It is common that players are assigned an objective to complete and have to navigate from point A to point B, often with the help from navigational aids. This study contains an experiment where test-players had to navigate through a set of 3D-environments to complete an objective, without navigational aids. Instead the author used artistic techniques (geometry, lighting and texture) to see if they could aff ect test-players decisions in how to proceed. Results where compared to predictions in how test-players where believed to proceed. The results from the experiment states that some artistic techniques can aff ect test-players decisions in how to proceed.

As mobile devices still have limited battery life, processing power, memory, and display size, they cannot yet execute gaming applications with the same fidelity and quality as their PC counterparts. In response, researchers have recently performed research with the goal of the real-time delivery of game content specifically to fit within mobile devices’ limitations. In this thesis, we present a novel approach to tackling the streaming of objects to mobile devices. Our goal is to reduce the number of objects subject to streaming from the server to the target devices, while not violating the user-defined limitations through an efficient, context-aware 3D object selection and prioritization scheme. We take advantage of the game context to stream only the most relevant objects. Our evaluations have shown that this technique not only leads to better performance in general, but also increases the gameplay experience by helping the player to achieve a higher score.