This thesis presents the development and evaluation of an exergame platformer. Designed in the ecosystem of Liopep with the goal of aiding sedentary workers in their office environment. The game was developed using Godot over a period of around 5 months. Results show a clear correlation between higher scores and increased exertion. Additionally analysis of which parts of the design highlight varied movement from the players has been performed. The findings of this work can hopefully further support what and what doesn’t work in this genre of games. The findings can also hopefully act as a further guideline for future game developers aiming to develop similar games in the Liopep ecosystem.

This thesis investigated the effect of exergaming versus mirror matched gym based exercise with no virtual stimuli on technology acceptance, flow and postural control in healthy young adults. Firstly a review of literature was performed analysing the effects of technology acceptance and flow on exergaming, and the effects of exergaming on postural control. Results showed the plausible nature of exergaming as an immersive environment and the potential to improve postural control. However, some major gaps in the literatures were identified. Technology acceptance had never been applied in exergaming and flow had only partly been applied to exergaming in limited studies. Additionally the effects of exergaming on postural control had shown some potential benefits, however no study had truly analysed the effects of exergaming on postural control by analysing mirror matched exercise with no virtual stimulus. The purpose of this thesis was to address these important areas of research and contribute novel evidence to the field. In two separate studies, 38 non active and 50 active young healthy adults took part in either exergaming based training or mirror matched gym based exercise with no virtual stimuli. Technology acceptance (behavioural intention), flow and postural control were measured at pre and post exercise intervention. Technology acceptance results showed that performance expectancy was significantly higher in the exergaming group in both studies, as well as being a significant predictor of behavioural intention at both pre and post exercise testing. In the second study, only, performance expectancy, social influences, and behavioural intention where statistically significantly higher for the exergaming group compared to the mirror matched gym based exercise with no virtual stimuli on technology acceptance, highlighting greater levels of acceptance into the exercise environment. Flow results showed greater levels immersion in the exergaming groups, especially in terms of clear goals, unambiguous feedback, action awareness merging, transformation of time and loss of self- consciousness. The effects of exergaming on postural control showed significant improvements in anterior- posterior standard deviation and range for the exergaming group in study one, and improvements in medio-lateral range in study two. Study two also showed significant improvement over time (pre-post exercise) for medio-lateral SD, range and centre of pressure. Evidence from both studies suggests that exergaming may offer an immersive environment for exercise which has a positive effect on behavioural intention to keep using the exergaming system in the future. With regards to postural control evidence from both studies suggest that exergaming may offer a new method of exercise to improve static postural control.

Submitted by Automação e Estatística (sst@bczm.ufrn.br) on 2018-07-03T12:46:30Z No. of bitstreams: 1 AlanKlingerSousaAlves_DISSERT.pdf: 7308597 bytes, checksum: 93db5dd7b53fe19393d357597c4c99c8 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Arlan Eloi Leite Silva (eloihistoriador@yahoo.com.br) on 2018-07-10T13:32:16Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 AlanKlingerSousaAlves_DISSERT.pdf: 7308597 bytes, checksum: 93db5dd7b53fe19393d357597c4c99c8 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-10T13:32:16Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 AlanKlingerSousaAlves_DISSERT.pdf: 7308597 bytes, checksum: 93db5dd7b53fe19393d357597c4c99c8 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2018-04-16 / A terapia ocupacional e a fisioterapia vêm ganhando nos últimos anos apoio da tecnologia aplicada em games. Dispositivos para VR tem sido utilizados juntamente com exergames para motivar o paciente a frequentar a terapia, entretendo-o ao mesmo tempo que realiza a terapia. Porém os consoles ainda não apresentam sensores capazes de identificar todos os movimentos necessários para os vários tipos de terapia, por exemplo, o Wii não é capaz de identificar se a mão do jogador estava fechada ou não. Dessa forma o TEAM (Laboratório de Tecnologias Educacionais, Assistivas e Multimídia), iniciou o desenvolvimento de tecnologias e exergames para aplicação em terapia física e ocupacional. Durante o desenvolvimento de novos dispositivos de interação, foi observado que a cada novo hardware era necessário modificar o código-fonte dos games já produzidos ou criar um novo game para tal dispositivo. Esse problema caracteriza um forte acoplamento entre o hardware e os exergames, bem como retrabalho, consequentemente havia dispositivos completamente desenvolvidos, mas que não era possível utilizá-los com um exergame. Logo notou-se a necessidade de uma ferramenta para intermediar tais artefatos. Este trabalho apresenta o TeamBridge, um middleware que tem por finalidade intermediar a comunicação entre dispositivos de interação para VR e exergames com foco em terapia física e ocupacional. Este middleware foi testado com um game comercial, provando que não há necessidade de modificação do código-fonte. Ele também passou por testes de performance, a fim de garantir que a experiência do jogador não seja comprometida. Ao final a ferramenta foi disponibilizada no GitHub. / Occupational therapy and physiotherapy have been gaining support in the last few years of applied technology in games. VR devices have been used together with exergames to motivate the patient to attend the therapy, entertaining him at the same time as performing the therapy. But the consoles still do not have sensors capable of identifying all the movements required for various types of therapy, for example, the Wii can’t identify whether the player’s hand was closed or not. In this way the TEAM (Laboratory of Educational, Assistive and Multimedia Technologies) started the development of technologies and exergames for application in occupational therapy. During the development of new input devices, it was observed that with each new hardware it was necessary to modify the source code of the games already produced or to create a new game for such a device. This problem characterizes a strong coupling between hardware and exergames, as well as rework, consequently there were fully developed devices, but it was not possible to use them with an exergame. Soon the need for a tool to intermediate these artifacts was noted. This paper presents our middleware that aims to intermediate communication between VR input devices and exergames with a focus on occupational therapy. This middleware was tested with a commercial game, proving that there is no need to modify the source code. He also underwent performance testing to ensure that the player’s experience is not compromised.

As technology and sedentary lifestyles have become an integral part of children's lives, so too has the prevalence of childhood obesity. Although video games are often associated with influencing sedentary behaviors, active gaming is a new genre that requires children to become physically active while playing the games. In this inquiry I explored six fifth grade students' experiences participating in active gaming in physical education classes for 30 minutes, twice weekly, during an eight week (16 sessions) study. I used qualitative methods including interviews, journal entries, and observational field notes. Analysis of data revealed students have a "Persistence to Game" (P2G) when participating in active gaming during physical education. When students experience P2G I considered them to be at "play" demonstrating play-like attributes. Persistence to game includes eight elements. Although not all elements need to be present at the same time, when these elements interact, students experience flow. The discoveries of this study suggest active gaming can be an appropriate tool used in 21st century physical education classes that appeals and is desirable to students.

Full-body controlled games offer the opportunity for not only entertainment, but education and exercise as well. Refined gameplay mechanics and content can boost intrinsic motivation and keep people playing over a long period of time, which is desirable for individuals who struggle with maintaining a regular exercise program. Within this gameplay genre, dance rhythm games have proven to be popular with game console owners. Yet, while other types of games utilize story mechanics that keep players engaged for dozens of hours, motion-controlled dance games are just beginning to incorporate these elements. In addition, this control scheme is still young, only becoming commercially available in the last few years. Instructional displays and clear real-time feedback remain difficult challenges. This thesis investigates the potential for full-body dance games to be used as tools for entertainment, education, and fitness. We built several game prototypes to investigate visual, aural, and tactile methods for instruction and feedback. We also evaluated the fitness potential of the game Dance Central 2 both by itself and with extra game content which unlocked based on performance. Significant contributions include a framework for running a longitudinal video game study, results indicating high engagement with some fitness potential, and informed discussion of how dance games could make exertion a more enjoyable experience.

One major issue that office workers face in their daily lives is a large amount of sedentary behavior. To help alleviate this, researchers at Linköping University are developing a collection of motion games to create natural and motivating active breaks named Liopep. This thesis presents the development and evaluation of one new game being added to Liopep called BoatSim. In BoatSim, the player makes real rowing motions in front of a web-camera to row a virtual boat between various islands, where they can grow crops, raise cows, etc. BoatSim was created in the game engine Godot, with a motion controller powered by Mediapipe Pose. The game was evaluated by repeated playtesting where data was gathered to determine how much movement was achieved by a player interacting with the various different parts of the game, and comparing these to each other.

Patients with end-stage renal disease that undergo dialysis treatment, visit a hospital on average 3 times a week. Such involved treatment means the patients lead very sedentary lifestyles. The sedentary lifestyle in turn makes the patient less capable and willing to participate in physical activity, worsening the patient’s overall health-related quality of life. Video games, more specifically exercise-based games, are an existing solution played by many across the world. It offers entertainment and while providing the player a means of exercising. An exercise based game played during treatment may potentially lead to a more active and healthy patient. This thesis explores the design of an exercise-based game for the patients that are required to play, similar to the circumstances the patients that the research project, Cyclescapes is being made for. We will learn the design considerations for making the challenges in an exercise based game for an audience that requires it and how to keep the player engaged and moving with respect to their own personal abilities and fitness levels. We then apply the knowledge in the design and creation of Cyclescapes, providing the patients with end-stage renal disease a safe and entertaining player experience that can challenge their physical fitness and improve their health related quality of life. / Thesis / Master of Applied Science (MASc)

Made available in DSpace on 2014-08-20T13:49:09Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Angeliza Xavier Kalinoski.pdf: 1868537 bytes, checksum: 383eee560adb06fc34ad7f46661b2b1f (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-02-21 / The Down Syndrome (DS) is a genetic accident classified as intellectual deficit. Some people with DS have associated diseases, which together with a non-active lifestyle, leaves them susceptible to develop a number of chronic non-communicable diseases. Some of these diseases are risk factors for Metabolic Syndrome, such as glucose intolerance, insulin resistance or diabetes mellitus, including two or more factors such as hypertension, elevated plasma triglyceride, HDL and central obesity. It is necessary to increase physical activity for this population. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of a physical activity program with exergaming (Xbox 360 ® kinectTM), during 16 weeks, on the variables of the Metabolic Syndrome. Physical fitness related to performance tests were conducted and the sessions intensity was controlled usingGT3X accelerometers. It is an experimental study and the population consisted of people with Down syndrome, both sexes over 18 years, residents of the city of Pelotas - RS. We identified 44 individuals, 28 have accepted to participate in the study meeting the inclusion criteria. The sample consisted of 28 subjects, divided into two groups (G1 - intervention (N = 14) and G2 - control (N = 14)), randomly selected and matched by sex. The intervention lasted 16 weeks with 3 sessions per week for 50 minutes. Were applied before and after the intervention a life style questionnaire, physical fitness performance tests, verified hemodynamic variables and conducted biochemical analyzes of both groups. For statistical analysis we used the statistical package SPSS 20.0 for Windows. Regarding Metabolic Syndrome variables systolic blood pressure was the only factor that presented significant difference p <0.01 compared to groups in the post test. In motor performance tests the experimental group presented statistically significant difference in strength tests of upper limb, lower limb strength and agility test showing a p <0.01 when compared between groups, upper limbs strength test was statistically significant. Regarding intensities during the session the overall average was 17.3 minutes in light activity, 22.2 minutes in moderate activity and 10.5 minutes in vigorous activities. Therefore we see a need for accessible programs, health promotion strategies and interventions to increase physical activity levels of people with disabilities. An alternative is to use exergaming that besides being motivational activities are activities with intensities that can change significantly variables related to health. / A Síndrome de Down (SD) constitui-se como acidente genético estando classificada no déficit intelectual. Parte das pessoas com SD possui doenças associadas que, juntamente com um estilo de vida não ativo, as deixa suscetíveis a desenvolver uma série de doenças crônicas não-transmissíveis. Algumas dessas doenças são fatores de risco para a Síndrome Metabólica, como a intolerância à glicose, resistência à insulina ou diabetes mellitus, incluindo dois fatores ou mais como a hipertensão, triglicéride plasmático elevado, HDL e obesidade central. Dessa forma, torna-se necessário incrementar a prática de atividade física para essa população. O objetivo do estudo experimental foi verificar o efeito de um programa de atividade física com exergaming (Xbox 360® kinectTM) durante 16 semanas, sobre as variáveis da Síndrome Metabólica. Foram realizados testes físicos relacionados ao desempenho motor e controlada a intensidade das sessões utilizando os acelerômetros GT3X. Para sua realização, a população estudada foi constituída de pessoas com Síndrome de Down de ambos os sexos maiores de 18 anos, residentes da cidade de Pelotas - RS. Foram identificados 44 indivíduos, 28 se propuseram a participar da pesquisa atendendo os critérios de inclusão. A amostra formada por 28 indivíduos, divididos em dois grupos (G1 - intervenção (N=14) e G2 - controle (N=14)), selecionados aleatoriamente pareados por sexo. A intervenção teve duração de 16 semanas com 3 sessões semanais de 50 minutos. Foram aplicados antes e depois da intervenção um questionário de hábitos de vida, testes de desempenho motor, verificadas as variáveis hemodinâmica e realizadas análises bioquímicas de ambos os grupos. Para as análises estatísticas, foi utilizado o pacote estatístico SPSS 20.0 for Windows. Em relação às variáveis de Síndrome Metabólica, a pressão arterial sistólica foi o único fator que obteve diferença significativa p < 0,01 comparando os grupos no pós-testes. Em relação aos testes de desempenho motor constatou que o grupo experimental obteve diferença estatisticamente significativa nos testes de força de membros superiores, força de membros inferiores e teste de agilidade apresentando um p < 0,01; quando comparado entre grupos, o teste de força de membros superiores apresentou resultados estatisticamente significatico. Em relação às intensidades durante a sessão observou-se que a média geral em minutos foi 17,3 minutos em atividades leves, 22,2 minutos em atividades moderadas e 10,5 minutos em atividades vigorosas. Com isso, vemos uma necessidade de programas acessíveis, estratégias de promoção da saúde e intervenções destinadas a aumentar os níveis de atividade física das pessoas com deficiência. Uma alternativa é a utilização de exergaming que além de serem atividades motivacionais, são atividades com intensidades que podem mudar significativamente em variáveis relacionadas à saúde.

The modern office environment requires employees to perform stationary work. This can cause them several health issues due to being sedentary for long periods of time. An exergame was developed with the aim to remedy these issues by encouraging short motion controlled game sessions during breaks. The game was a farming game developed using the Godot game engine and the ML based skeletal tracking software Mediapipe. The game was played for 86 two-minute sessions where data was collected to evaluate how to use farming game tropes within the design for more movement to yield better results. It was also used to evaluate how the game mechanics could be distributed throughout the game session to promote sustained exertion during an average session. It was concluded that for farming exergames, if the goal is to reward players who exert themselves more, the in-game rewards should not make the game easier to play effectively as they generally do in typical farming games. Furthermore, it was also concluded that interactions happening in a sporadic order help with keeping the average exertion consistent, in addition to the aspect that players always have something to do during the allotted game session time.

Human aging is associated with structural and functional brain deteriorations and a corresponding cognitive decline. Exergaming (i.e., physically active video-gaming) has been supposed to attenuate age-related brain deteriorations and may even improve cognitive functions in healthy older adults. Effects of exergaming, however, vary largely across studies. Moreover, the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms by which exergaming may affect cognitive and brain function are still poorly understood. Therefore, we systematically reviewed the effects of exergame interventions on cognitive outcomes and neurophysiological correlates in healthy older adults (>60 years). After screening 2709 studies (Cochrane Library, PsycINFO, Pubmed, Scopus), we found 15 eligible studies, four of which comprised neurophysiological measures. Most studies reported within group improvements in exergamers and favorable interaction effects compared to passive controls. Fewer studies found superior effects of exergaming over physically active control groups and, if so, solely for executive functions. Regarding individual cognitive domains, results showed no consistence. Positive effects on neurophysiological outcomes were present in all respective studies. In summary, exergaming seems to be equally or slightly more effective than other physical interventions on cognitive functions in healthy older adults. Tailored interventions using well-considered exergames and intervention designs, however, may result in more distinct effects on cognitive functions.