El escultismo es una de las asociaciones juveniles más grandes y reconocidas del mundo. Su propuesta formativa, conocida como Método Scout, trabaja con niños y jóvenes a nivel personal y grupal con el objetivo de formar mejores ciudadanos. Sin embargo, tiene un déficit para presentar su material formativo, ocasionando falta de motivación entre scouts para iniciar su progresión. Por ello, el principal objetivo del presente trabajo es rediseñar el material formativo de la Asociación Scouts del Perú haciendo uso de las herramientas que brinda el diseño de información. Se espera que aplicando el diseño de información como herramienta se pueda transformar el material formativo de la Asociación Scouts del Perú brindando una alternativa que genere mayor motivación en los lobatos. La metodología utilizada es investigación experimental, ya que incluye una variable experimental, en un entorno fijo. El nivel de investigación es experimental y el enfoque que se ha elegido es mixto ya que se utilizara tanto el método cuantitativo como el cualitativo. La solución presentada es un juego para móviles en el cual los lobatos responden preguntas para ir avanzando a través de un circuito, tiene la opción de juego en equipo donde las seisenas y manadas compiten entre sí. La propuesta responde a las dificultadas encontradas en el material actual sin desligarse de las bases del escultismo. En conclusión, luego del testeo, el 100% de lobatos respondieron positivamente a la propuesta, demostrando interés hacia el material y motivación por iniciar su progresión, validando así la hipótesis presentada. / Scouting is one of the largest and most recognized youth associations in the world. Its formative proposal, known as the Scout Method, works with children and young people on a personal and group level with the aim of forming better citizens. However, they have a deficit to present their formative material, causing lack of motivation among scouts to start their progression. Therefore, the main objective of this work is to redesign the training material of the Scouts of Peru Association using the tools provided by the design of information. It is expected that applying the information design as a tool can transform the training material of the Scouts of Peru Association providing an alternative that generates more motivation in scouts. The methodology used is experimental research, since it includes an experimental variable, in a fixed environment. The level of research is experimental one and the approach that has been chosen is mixed one since both the quantitative and the qualitative method will be used. The presented solution is a game for mobiles in which the scouts answer questions to go through a circuit, has the option of team play where they compete in teams. The proposal responds to the difficulties found in the current material without breaking away from the foundations of Scouting. In conclusion, after testing, 100% of scouts responded positively to the proposal, demonstrating interest in the material and motivation to start their progression, thus validating the hypothesis presented. / Trabajo de investigación

This master's thesis describes the use of microtransactions in video games and their influence over the game design, player experience, and virtual goods presentation. The goal was to compare the titles that use different monetization methods (paid and free to play games) and different types of microtransactions (functional and cosmetic), and to identify which parts of those games could be influenced by microtransactions and how. The research focuses on five titles - The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, Anthem, Warframe a Path of Exile. The first part of the thesis summarises the historical evolution of monetization models used in video games and defines the terms microtransaction, micropayment, virtual goods, or loot box. It also contains a typology of microtransactions, describes their implementation methods, and possible consequences tied to their use. The second part focuses on the analysis of the chosen five games. The research used the following methods - analysis of my own gameplay and mutual comparison of each game. Each game was examined over the course of ten hours, in sessions about 45-60 minutes long - the gameplay was accompanied by video recordings of the gameplay, screenshots, and a journal that contained detailed information about each gaming session. The research...

The notion of aesthetic unity has garnered substantial attention within the realm of contemporary art, particularly in the domains of film and gaming. These creative mediums encompass a multitude of design elements, making the pursuit of aesthetic unity all the more crucial. In the context of traditional 3D action games, achieving aesthetic unity holds paramount importance in crafting captivating and immersive experiences. Notably, combat systems play a pivotal role in attaining aesthetic unity as they often serve as the primary avenue for player interaction. This research delves into the concept of aesthetic unity in action games, with a specific focus on strategies employed in traditional 3D action game design. Through interviews with seasoned developers possessing extensive research and development experience, this study utilizes the interview research methodology to extract valuable insights and summarize the strategies employed in the development process. Additionally, the study underscores the significance of development models, gameplay design, and other essential design elements, such as plot, in fostering aesthetic unity within the realm of 3D action games.

This master's thesis aims to investigate the narrative components inherent in open-world games. In this thesis, we will extract the narrative part of a game,analyze it, and compare the narrative part with other game design elements. The focus will be on the game "The Witcher III: The Wild Hunt," with specific portions of the game studied using AutoCAD and in-game playthroughs to extract data relating to narrative components such as items, characters, and locales. Data such as buildings, cities and objects referring to main-quest, sidequest, random interaction, cutscenes-storytelling, object interaction, and recurring characters are generated from the open-world game The Witcher III:The Wild Hunt using AutoCAD. Objects are used to mark narrative components during gameplay, and these elements will be exported into Excel for analysis using Tableau. The results of the research will be coupled with other parts of the level design. The collected data will be evaluated with Tableau, and a comparative study between the narrative part and the game-level design part has been conducted to uncover patterns and trends in the open-world game. This study investigates the narrative components found in the game world, examining their importance on various scales and their relationships with other game mechanics. According to the research, item interactions become more significant on the third floor and in larger cities, whereas cut scenes and narration are more common in big cities and on the first floor of buildings. The study also emphasizes the connection between main quests and side quests, indicating their strong relationship to the game's overarching story. The use of side missions, which frequently entail interacting with city objects, becomes increasingly important for encouraging player exploration. The study emphasizes the need for game designers to tailor their use of narrative components to the scale and context of each gaming setting, ultimately helping them to possibly create more immersive and engaging game worlds.

How might we encourage playful yet provocative attitudes to explore unfamiliar methods? This thesis investigates how interaction designers can use unusual and thought-provoking methods in their design process. It focuses on understanding the challenges, limitations and opportunities of these types of approaches. The thesis explores the use of an abusive game probe as a way to spark conversations between participants and designers. The abusive game probe has the potential to generate meaningful and insightful outcomes. The proposed abusive game probe provided difficulties, being a unique and untested method. The topic of abuse presents challenges such as ethical consideration, which still requires further research. While determining its effectiveness can be complex, the main purpose is to encourage designers to embrace unexpected and unknown elements. This thesis provides guidance for future designers to incorporate these methods into their research, continue on this project or venture out and create new and alternate methods as contributions to the field of interaction design.

This study investigates how players experience psychological benefits, specifically in promoting resilience and positive behavior change, in Soulsborne games. It is important to note that this study does not suggest video games as a substitute for professional therapy or mental health treatment. This inquiry holds significance for game researchers and designers, and broadens the conversation on the psychological impacts of video games, particularly in unconventionally challenging games. The methodologies used include a close reading of common design elements and a content analysis of public online discussions, underpinned by the principles of the self-efficacy theory and Self-Determination Theory. The close reading highlights four design elements of these games and how they leveraged essential factors for developing self-competence and motivation. These elements overlap significantly with strategies used in professional resilience training programs. The content analysis reveals a strong connection between the difficulty and design philosophy of Soulsborne games and player experiences of coping with personal difficulties or challenges. The findings support the hypothesis that active engagement with Soulsborne games may boost player resilience and catalyze positive behavior alterations, with potential implications for real-life personal development. However, the potential for researcher bias in the detailed examination and content analysis techniques should be acknowledged.

Video games are critical and relevant tools which can be used to influence perceptions of nature. Many games have already sought to educate players about environmental issues, but the effect that games as a whole have on players’ respect for nature is yet uncertain. This thesis thus aims to investigate this issue by conducting a game analysis based on a framework of respect for nature, which will be established as a foundational aspect of this paper. From the game analysis, lessons and design principles that can be employed in future game design to foster respect for nature in players will be collated.

The aim of this study is to explore the research question “Can the Research through Design (RtD) critical note-taking guidelines be utilized in the pre-production and design of a video game trailer to combat sanism?”. To achieve this, the research involved gathering previous studies on representing mental illness, as well as examining fictional and non-fictional experiences of depression depicted in games, journals, and books. These sources serve as anchors, as described by Sadokierski (2019), while also utilizing parts of Sadokierski’s critical journaling guidelines for note-taking. Drawing inspiration from the gathered material, the study focuses on designing the character, game and narrative before proceeding to create a rough draft. The findings from the trailer’s design process indicate that Sanism can be addressed by challenging negative stereotypes and avoiding their perpetuation. This study demonstrates an example of how actively avoiding stereotypes, drawing inspiration from first-hand experiences, and incorporating metaphors may combat Sanism and foster a more positive outlook on mental illness through a video game trailer. Thus, while we perceived that the utilization of the critical note-taking guidelines in the pre-production and design of the trailer were useful, the results of the study were not conclusive since it requires testing and evaluation in future studies. Therefore, it is recommended that further research be conducted in order to explore to what extent utilizing the RtD critical note-taking guidelines, in the design process, may aid in avoiding the perpetuation of stereotypes and reduction of stereotyping by actively challenging them.

The relationship between narrative and game mechanics has been researched under terms such as ludonarrative dissonance, ludonarrative resonance and narrative mechanics. Yu-Gi-Oh! is a Trading Card Game which contains game mechanics that symbolically represents sections of the Arthurian legend. In this thesis the mechanics of specific Yu-Gi-Oh! cards were compared to the Arthurian legend. From this analysis were design guidelines derived, on how to represent a narrative with game mechanics. Game objects can be referenced by listing associated cards. The name of a mechanic can help in symbolically tell a narrative. The exclusion of a mechanic can also represent something. The conditions for a mechanic to be available is an area where narrative can be implemented. If a narrative mechanic is surrounded by many other mechanics, the symbolism can be “drowned out”. There is a balance between effective symbolism and a good game mechanic.

<p>This paper is a qualitative study that utilizes game players to learn more about the impact of game narrative, and to use this information to understand more of its role in the production of<br> games. Initial research into the topic revealed that many competing interests drive game production, but that if narrative was “down-prioritized” in production, a game was more likely to suffer compounding issues that could result in a poor end-product and launch. This nets monetary consequences for a studio, but also severely impacts the team of developers. As the game industry already faces widespread issues with crunch, long work hours over long periods of time, any additional strain on production exacerbates existing issues. Game production documentation is often held privately as the trade secrets of a given studio, so the most feasible way to address these questions is to seek a successful game with amble published documentation and compare those resources to the experiences players themselves have with the title. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild was the game chosen.<br> A sample of 18 students from Purdue University completed an initial interest survey and provided demographic information. Of those who played games regularly, 4 participants were randomly selected to move forward with an audio and video recorded gameplay session that utilized a think-aloud protocol to capture moment-to-moment experience, and then an audio recorded interview about their experiences. These methods were employed to generate transcripts of their thoughts and experiences where the researcher conducted a thematic analysis of the content. Fifteen codes were synthesized from these transcripts and found that through the context of narrative, participants expressed that gameplay, aesthetics, and critical paths in a game facilitated their experiences with narrative. Participants approached the game and spoke about narrative in a variety of ways during the game session, but all came away with similar conclusions when interviewed. This suggests that game elements that convey narrative are highly effective and opens questions into how changes to those elements can sway interpretation and if that can be controlled for. Further, studying the patterns between these elements and determining what creates the most meaning for players could open new avenues for efficient game design. </p>