In this work I focused on the possibility to develop LARP in the means of participation and performance. Furthermore, I focus on the continuity of individual games (segments) and the possibility of connecting various, already existing, LARP genres. In this series of games, the most striking of the genres is the political LARP, whose political charge has been intermingled by other LARP genres in my work.

In this thesis we present two approaches to improve automatic playtesting using player modeling. By modeling various cohorts of players we are able to train Convolutional Neural Network based agents that simulate human gameplay using different strategies directly learnt from real player data. The goal is to use the developed agents to predict useful metrics of newly created game content. We validated our approaches using the game Candy Crush Saga, a non-deterministic match-three puzzle game with a huge search space and more than three thousand levels available. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time that player modeling is applied in a match-three puzzle game. Nevertheless, the presented approaches are general and can be extended to other games as well. The proposed methods are compared to a baseline approach that simulates gameplay using a single strategy learnt from random gameplay data. Results show that by simulating different strategies, our approaches can more accurately predict the level difficulty, measured as the players’ success rate, on new levels. Both the approaches improved the mean absolute error by 13% and the mean squared error by approximately 23% when predicting with linear regression models. Furthermore, the proposed approaches can provide useful insights to better understand the players and the game. / I denna uppsats presenterar vi två tillvägagångssätt för att förbättra automatisk speltestning genom modellering av spelare. Genom att modellera olika grupper av spelare kunde vi träna Convolutional Neural Network-baserade agenter för att simulera mänskligt spelande med hjälp av olika strategier som är lärda direkt från mänsklig spelardata. Målet är att använda de utvecklade agenterna för att förutsäga användbar metrik av nyskapat spelinnehåll. Vi validerade vårt tillvägagångssätt genom Candy Crush Saga, ett icke-deterministiskt 3-matchnings pusselspel med mer än tre tusen nivåer. Detta är första gången som spelarmodellering appliceras på ett 3-matchnings pusselspel. De presenterade tillvägagångssätten är mer generella och kan utökas till andra spel. De föreslagna tillvägagångssätten är jämförda med ett tillvägagångssätt som simulerar spelande genom en strategi som är lärd direkt från slumpmässig mänsklig spelardata. Resultatet visar att vårt tillvägagångssätt, genom simulering av olika strategier är, mer exakt för att förutsäga spelarens svårighet, mätt genom spelarens framgång, på nya nivåer. Båda tillvägagångssätten förbättrade mean absolute error med 13% och mean squared error med ungefär 23%. Dessutom kan de föreslagna tillvägagångssätten ge en användbar insikt för att bättre förstå spelarna och spelet.

This thesis addresses computer game play activities from the perspective of embodied and situated cognition. From such a perspective, game play can be divided into the physical handling of the game and the players' understanding of it. Game play can also be described in terms of three different levels of situatedness "high-level" situatedness, the contextual "here and now", and "low-level" situatedness. Moreover, theoretical and empirical implications of such a perspective have been explored more in detail in two case studies. / <p>Report code: LiU-Tek-Lic-2008:17.</p>

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Creativity can be a useful skill in today's classrooms and workplaces. When individuals talk about creativity, it's unclear what the controlling variables are when we tact behavior as "creative." Research in understanding the processes behind behaviors that are considered "creative" would assist in identifying functional relations and provide insight on how to teach creativity. Since creativity is often described as doing something different from the norm, behavioral variability may be a potential aspect of creativity. This study aimed to replicate previous findings by investigating the effects of discrimination training in a multiple schedule of varied and repetitive responding in the context of a video game. Participants played through a 2D online video game made in Bloxels. Different alternating-colored platforms served as the discriminative stimuli for the vary and repeat components. Three parameters of variability were measured (e.g., left jumps, right jumps, and double jumps). The results of the study indicate that participants were able to learn the discrimination of when to repeat and vary their responses depending on which colored platform they encountered.

Social games have become popular on social media such as Facebook and MySpace. While there are plenty of market reports regarding social media, the related academic research is limited. This study applies Homans’ cost‐reward structure from Social Exchange Theory to investigate how social games change people’s social behavior on social media. The concepts of rewards are drawn from the gratifications of social media use, and the concepts of costs are drawn form the symptoms of media addiction. In a survey of 323 college students, participants’ perceived rewards and costs of Facebook use and game play are measured. The results indicate social game players perceived significantly higher costs of Facebook use than non‐players. In addition, costs of Facebook use and costs of game play also play important roles to influence social game players’ willingness to play more social games. Discussion and limitations are provided. / text

Hakuōki, produced by Idea Factory, is an otome game series set in late Edo periodJapan. It is among the most popular video game series in its genre. The games inthis series have been localized for the English video game market, one that is verydifferent from the source culture. The game play experience is expected to beequivalent in all language versions of the game – however, given that any twolanguages cannot be completely equivalent and have different cultural contexts,translation problems are expected to arise. Acknowledging these problems, thisstudy aimed to determine whether or not, due to choices made in the translationprocess, dialogue was altered. Consequently, the study aimed to find out if aselected character’s personality could be perceived differently between the playersof two language versions of the video game Hakuōki. The study was conducted intwo parts: first, a translation analysis was conducted by the researcher. Secondly,to see if character personality was altered in translation, selected lines were used ina questionnaire survey that was conducted both in English and Japanese. Therespondents were asked to describe their perception of the character based on theexcerpts provided in the questionnaire survey. The results of the surveys werecompared and contrasted with the findings of the translation analysis. The resultsof the study show that dialogue was altered in translation, and that the selectedcharacter’s personality can be perceived differently between the players of twolanguage versions of the video game.

Šio darbo tikslas buvo nustatyti kaip įsitraukimas į kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimą siejasi su paauglių agresyviu elgesiu bei kaip gimimo eiliškumas siejasi su įsitraukimu į kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimą ir priklausomybę sukeliančių medžiagų vartojimu. Atliktame tyrime dalyvavo 224 10, 11 ir 12 klasių Jurbarko Giedraičio-Giedriaus gimnazijos mokiniai, kurių amžius 16 - 19 m. 14 apklausoje dalyvavusių paauglių yra mergaitės, 75 – berniukai. Kiekvienas tiriamasis turėjo užpildyti po keletą klausimynų: Įsitraukimą į kompiuterinius žaidimus matuojančią skalę ir Buss – Durkee klausimyną paauglio agresyvumo lygiui vertinti. Tiriamųjų buvo paprašyta atsakyti į 116 anketos klausimų. Tyrimo rezultatai parodė, kad didesnis įsitraukimas į kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimą siejasi su didesne fiziniu agresyviu elgesiu tarp merginų. Fizinis agresyvus elgesys tarp vaikinų nesiskiria skirtingo įsitraukimo į kompiuterinius žaidimus grupėse. Verbalinis agresyvus elgesys vienodai būdingas tiek mažiau įsitraukusiems į kompiuterinius žaidimus paaugliams, tiek ir daugiau įsitraukusiems. T skirtų paaugliams ir M skirtų subrendusiesiems kategorijų kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimas nesisieja su didesniu paauglių agresyviu elgesiu. Taip pat didesnis įsitraukimas į kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimą nesisieja su didesniu priklausomybę sukeliančių medžiagų vartojimu tarp vaikinų. Didesnis įsitraukimas į kompiuterinių žaidimų žaidimą siejasi su didesniu merginų alkoholio ir kitų narkotinių medžiagų vartojimu... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of this work was to determine how involvement in computer game play is associated with adolescent aggressive behaviour and how birth order refers to the access to computer game play and consumption of addictive substanes. The research was conducted with 224 students from 10, 11 and 12 classes in Jurbarkas Giedraitis - Giedrius High School, aged 16 - 19. There were 14 girls and 75 boys among surveyed teenagers. Each had to answer several questionnaires: involvement in computer games, measuring scale and Buss – Durkee questionnaire to access the level of adolescent aggression. Subjects were asked to answer 116 questions. The results showed that greater involvement in computer game play associated with greater physical agressive behaviour among girls. The physical aggressive behaviour among boys is no different to the involvement of different groups of computer games. Verbal aggressive behaviour is equally inherent for less or more involving in computer games among teenagers.T for teens and M for mature categories, computer games play is not associated with greater aggressive behaviour among teenagers. It is also greater involvement in computer game play is not associated with higher consumption of addictive substance using among boys. Increased involvement in comouter game play is associated with increased female using of alcohol and other drugs. Birth order in the family is not associated with higher consumption of addictive substance using and greater... [to full text]

Tyrimo objektas: 11–12 metų mokinių fizinis aktyvumas (FA) ir fizinis pajėgumas (FP) kūno kultūros pamokose. Tyrimo problema: Teigiama, kad FA kūno kultūros pamokose dažnai neatitinka VDFA rekomendacijų (Pate et al., 2006), kai fizinė veikla joje trunka mažiau nei 50% viso pamokos laiko (McKenzie et al., 1995; Nader, 2003). Aktyvumo lygis gali skirtis priklausomai nuo fizinio lavinimo pamokų turinio (McKenzie ir kt., 1995). Aukštos kokybės kūno kultūros programos (kūno kultūros pamokos) gali prisidėti prie bendro (kasdienio) mokinių fizinio aktyvumo lygio gerinimo, bei vaikų sveikatos gerinimo (Veugelers, Fitzgerald, 2005; Bates, 2006; Ehrlich, 2008). Tikslas: Nustatyti 11–12 metų mokinių fizinį aktyvumą ir pajėgumą judriųjų žaidimų ir judesių lavinimo kūno kultūros pamokose. Tyrimo uždaviniai: 1. Nustatyti ir palyginti mokinių fizinį aktyvumą ir pasyvumą judriųjų žaidimų ir judesių lavinimo pamokose. 2. Palyginti berniukų ir mergaičių fizinio aktyvumo ir pasyvumo rodiklius judriųjų žaidimų ir judesių lavinimo pamokose. 3. Nustatyti fizinio aktyvumo ir fizinio pajėgumo rodiklių sąsajas. Tyrimo hipotezės: 1. Judriųjų žaidimų kūno kultūros pamokoje mokinių fizinis aktyvumas yra didesnis, o fizinis pasyvumas mažesnis nei judesių lavinimo pamokoje. 2. Judriųjų žaidimų ir judesių lavinimo pamokose berniukų fizinis aktyvumas yra didesnis nei mergaičių. 3. Didesnis mokinių fizinis aktyvumas siejasi su didesniu jų fiziniu pajėgumu. Tyrimo metodika: Mokinių fizinis aktyvumas per... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Object of research: 11–12 years students’ physical activity (PA) in physical education (PE) lessons. Research problem: It is argued that PA in PE classes often do not meet MVPA recommendations (Pate et al., 2006), as it takes less than 50% of the total lesson time (McKenzie et al., 1995; Nader, 2003). Activity levels vary depending on the content of physical education lessons (McKenzie et al., 1995). High-quality physical education (physical education lessons) can contribute to the total (daily) improvement in students' physical activity and health (Veugelers, Fitzgerald, 2005; Bates, 2006; Ehrlich, 2008). The aim of the current research: Evaluate physical activity and physical fitness of 11 – 12 years Lithuanian students in Game play and Motor skills practice physical education lessons. Objectives of the research: 1. Identify and compare students' physical activity and time spent passively in Game play and Motor skills practice lessons. 2. Compare physical activity and time spent passively of boys and girls in Game play and Motor skills practice lessons. 3. Evaluate the relationship between physical activity and physical fitness. The research hypothesis: 1. Physical activity is higher and time spent passively lower in Game play rather than Motor skills practice lesson. 2. Boys are more physically active than girls in both Game play and Motor skills practice lessons. 3. Increased students' physical activity is associated with better physical fitness. Research Methodology... [to full text]