The video game industry has gone through a dramatic change over the last few decades, yetseveral reports show that there are currently many challenges that developers face in their dailywork. A major challenge includes difficulties of getting projects to close within set time andresource restraints. This is something that indicates a connection to the management methodsbeing used, among which Agile management is a popular framework that many turn to. Thisthesis searches for connections between challenges in video game development and the usage ofagile methods like Scrum and Kanban. For this, a qualitative research strategy was used in orderto look into the experiences of video game developers. Five semi-structured interviews with atotal of eleven respondents were conducted. As a complement, a quantitative web-based surveywas made where 23 people participated. The results of this study show that challengespreviously defined within the video game industry, including feature creep, crunch periods anda stressful work pace can also be identified in the industry in southern Sweden to some extent.Underlying patterns indicate the industrial culture as an explanation for an incorrectimplementation of agile methods, which could eventually lead to issues surrounding riskmanagement in projects.

Spel har förvandlats till en mainstream underhållningskälla och har utvecklats tillsammans med teknologin. Till en nivå som nyttjar en spelares alla sinnen för att fördjupa de i ett spel. Uppmärksamheten kring tillgänglighet inom spel har dock försvagats.Detta examensarbete undersöker de tillgängliga lösningarna som syftar till att hjälpa döva eller hörselskadade, främst när det gäller situationsmedvetenhet genom att ersätta ljud med en visuell representation. De i skrivande stund tillgängliga lösningarna jämförs sedan med resultaten i relaterad forskning och en undersökning som genomfördes för detta arbete. Målsättningen var att hitta vad som fungerade som en visuell representation av ljud, med undersökningssvaren som ger insikt i döva och hörselskadade individers perspektiv på lösningarna.Dessa resultat kan fungera som en referenspunkt för utvecklare som vill implementera en visuell representation av ljud eller liknande funktion i deras spel. / Video Games have turned into a mainstream source of entertainment and have evolved alongside technological improvements. To the point of being able to bring the player immersive gaming experiences that rely heavily on their senses. However, the attention to the accessibility aspects of video games has been lagging behind.This thesis explores the available solutions that aim to help Deaf or Hard of Hearing (DHH) players, primarily in terms of situational awareness by substituting audio with a visual representation. The currently available solutions are then compared with the findings in related research and a survey that was conducted for this paper. The objective was to find what worked as a visual representation of audio, with the survey responses providing insight into DHH players perspective.These findings can serve as a reference point for developers who want to implement a visual substitute for audio or a similar feature intheir game.

Tv-spel är något som en signifikant andel av populationen ägnar mycket tid åt. Idag är inte tv- spel enbart något som personer har som fritidssyssla, utan kan även spelas professionellt. Vissa aspekter av tv-spel har det forskats kring, men det tycks finnas en del outforskade områden. Syftet var att beskriva och diskutera interaktionsritualer i förhållande till ”video game literacy”, genom att undersöka hur individer beskriver att de har lärt sig att spela tv-spel samt genom att diskutera kring hur spelandet kan förstås som en social interaktionsritual. Metoden har varit av kvalitativ karaktär, med semi-strukturerade intervjuer som metod för empiriinsamling. Resultatet från studien visade att spelandet av tv-spel tillsammans med andra individer kan förstås som interaktionsritualer, om de innehåller vissa element. Vidare visade studien att individer kan utveckla sina kunskaper kring tv-spel genom att delta i denna typ av interaktioner, men även att det är möjligt för individer att utveckla sina kunskaper enskilt. / Video games are something a significant portion of the population spend a lot of time playing. Today, video games aren’t something people solely play in their spare time, but also something played professionally. Some aspects of video games have been researched, however a few unexplored areas still appear to exist. The aim of this study was to describe and discuss interaction rituals in relation to “video game literacy” through examining how individuals describe how they’ve learned to play video games, as well as through discussing how playing video games can be considered an interaction ritual. This essay has utilized a qualitative approach with semi-structured interviews as the method for gathering empirical data. The results from this study suggest that the playing of video games together can be considered a form of interaction ritual, if the interaction contains certain elements. Furthermore, the study showed that it is possible for individuals to develop their understanding of video games through participating in these types of interactions, however it is also possible for individuals to increase their knowledge individually.

Cette thèse propose des modèles, méthodes et outils destinés aux game designers de jeux thérapeutiques. Le problème de conception le plus fondamental des jeux thérapeutiques est le gameplay, c'est-à-dire des objectifs de jeu et des actions que le joueur doit effectuer pour atteindre ces objectifs. Dans un jeu thérapeutique, le gameplay doit à la fois produire l'effet thérapeutique et motiver le patient à suivre son protocole. Les problèmes sous-jacents de celui-ci sont l'évaluation médicale et ludique du jeu, et l'échange de connaissances entre game designers et experts santé. Nous proposons une méthode de game design de jeu thérapeutique allant de la définition du problème à l'évaluation. Cette méthode intègre les autres solutions que nous proposons, notamment le modèle player/game/therapy et une méthode de formalisation du gameplay. / This PhD thesis explores the field of therapeutic games in order to propose methods and tools for the game designer of such games. The most fundamental design problem of therapeutic games is the gameplay, ie. the game objectives and the actions the player does to address the objectives. In therapeutic game, the gameplay must, at the same time, provide the therapeutic effects and motivate the patient to follow his protocol. The sub-problems of this are 1. the two-fold evaluation (medical and motivation), 2. the exchange of knowledge between game designers and health experts. We propose a therapeutic game design method which begins with the problem definition and ends with the two-fold evaluation. This method integrates the other solutions we propose, particularly the player / game / therapy model and a method to formalize the gameplay.

La presente investigación tuvo como objetivo determinar el rol de los elementos gráficos de los escenarios de los videojuegos del género de aventura en el proceso de inmersión de los jugadores explorers. Por ello, se propuso realizar un análisis de la construcción y el diseño de escenarios en videojuegos para poder así reconocer qué elementos gráficos están presentes en su desarrollo y, de esta manera, poder determinar si contribuyen a que se dé la inmersión. Se llevó a cabo un estudio cualitativo transversal en el que se analizaron dos videojuegos pertenecientes a este género: Uncharted (2016) y The legend of zelda “Breath of the wild” (2017). Estos títulos presentan mecánicas similares con estilos gráficos diferentes, para poder analizar cómo el elemento gráfico influye en la experiencia. Entre los principales hallazgos, se determinó que los entornos realistas, la presencia de colores icónicos y una perspectiva de tercera persona son los elementos que tienen mayor tendencia a generar la sensación de inmersión debido a la gran cantidad de información que tiene que decodificar el jugador. Si bien se determinó que los elementos gráficos de los escenarios sí forman parte de la inmersión de los jugadores explorers, también es cierto que no son el elemento más importante, ya que se determinó que la inmersión en un videojuego puede ser generada por cualquier estímulo fuerte que genere emoción y motivación en el jugador. Por lo tanto, la suma de varios estímulos solo va a mejorar y potenciar la experiencia inmersiva. / The objective of this research was to determine the role of the graphic elements of the adventure genre video game scenarios in the immersion process of the explorer’s players. For this reason, it was proposed to carry out an analysis of the construction and design of scenarios in video games to be able to recognize what graphic elements are present in their development and, in this way, to be able to determine if they contribute to immersion. A qualitative cross-sectional study was carried out in which two video games belonging to this genre were analyzed: Uncharted (2016) and the legend of Zelda “Breath of the wild” (2017). These titles feature similar mechanics with different graphic styles, so you can analyze how the graphic element influences the experience. Among the main findings, it was determined that realistic environments, the presence of iconic colors and a third-person perspective are the elements that have the greatest tendency to generate the sensation of immersion due to the large amount of information that the player has to decode. Although it was determined that the graphic elements of the scenarios are part of the immersion of the explorer’s players, it is also true that they are not the most important element, since it was determined that immersion in a video game can be generated by any strong stimulus that generates emotion and motivation in the player. Therefore, the sum of various stimuli will only enhance and enhance the immersive experience. / Trabajo de investigación

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El presente trabajo de investigación tiene como finalidad explorar y entender el rol del sonido en los videojuegos lanzados al mercado entre 1996 a 2019, usando Resident Evil 7 (2017) como un estudio de caso. Para un mejor análisis del apartado sonoro se ha dividido el estudio del sonido en dos partes: música incidental y sound design, teniendo presente, además, que la línea que divida música y efecto de sonido es cada vez menor. La primera parte del trabajo se centra en el rol de la música incidental en el videojuego; la forma en que el mismo, como medio audiovisual no-lineal e interactivo, necesita un acercamiento diferente al de otros medios lineales como el cine; y un análisis musical de la banda sonora de dos videojuegos de la saga Resident Evil con más de quince años de diferencia, con el fin de apreciar como ha evolucionado el rol de la música en el videojuego. La segunda parte del trabajo se centra en el rol del sound design en el videojuego; analizando la complejidad de este apartado; la forma en que la misma interactua con la música al punto de compenetrarse, viéndose el videojuego como medio interactivo, favorecido de esta interacción. La tercera parte del trabajo se centra en la relación que existe entre la implementación sonora, composición musical y sound design. Se busca con el presente trabajo contribuir al estudio y entendimiento del sonido en el videojuego, y la relación de este apartado con sus principales características: interactividad y no-linealidad. / The present research aims to explore and understand the role of sound in video games released on the market between 1996 to 2019, using Resident Evil 7 (2017) as a case study. For a better analysis of the audio section, the study of sound has been divided into two parts: incidental music and sound design, bearing in mind, in addition, that the line that divides music and sound effect is less and less. The first part of the work focuses on the role of incidental music in the video game; the way in which it, as a non-linear and interactive audiovisual medium, needs a different approach than other linear media such as cinema; and a musical analysis of the soundtrack of two video games in the Resident Evil saga more than fifteen years apart, in order to appreciate how the role of music in the video game has evolved. The second part of the work focuses on the role of sound design in the video game; analyzing the complexity of this section; the way in which it interacts with music to the point of interpenetrating, seeing the video game as an interactive medium, favored by this interaction. The third part of the work focuses on the relationship between sound implementation, musical composition, and sound design. This work seeks to contribute to the study and understanding of sound in the video game, and the relationship of this section with its main characteristics: interactivity and non-linearity. / Trabajo de investigación

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