GAME USABILITYWeek 2

SETH EDENS, DALTON DEMORROW, TOM EDENS,

JUSTIN CLEMENT, JUSSTEN CRADDOCK

ABSTRACTCurrent game controllers are designed with one common demographic in mind, the player has two hands. As a team we attempted to upset that norm with the design of the “G.A.M.E.R.” Giving Amputees Means to Entertaining Realms. This presentation will cover how we collaboratively designed one controller from the work of five individuals. It will explain the concepts involved and why each individual chose the concept they did. You’ll see each of the individual concepts merged into a schematic of the G.A.M.E.R. controller and then a prototype of the design being tested. Finally we’ll discuss the outcome of the playtest and review our process with a post mortem of our work as a team.

DESIGN PURPOSE

• The G.A.M.E.R. controller is a crucial tool for one-handed gamers to finally be able to play competitively or casually as comfortable as possible.

INTRODUCTION

• We are creating this controller to expand the potential audience.

• Increasing the number of possible gamers will likely increase sales across the industry.

• This will increase profit for the industry as a whole.

JUSSTEN’S DESIGN INSPIRATION“My inspiration came from a combination of a game I used to play, called Time Crisis 2 (Namco, 1998) and also a bow. These gave me the inspiration for the pistol-grip style controller. I like the way they feel in my hand, and I could hold them for hours with little to no strain. Time Crisis 2 utilizes a gun which fits me well since I have big hands. The bow that I used was tailored to my hand so it was really nice to hold. That was the style I was going for, a controller that is better to hold for longer periods of time.”–Jussten Craddock

SETH’S DESIGN INSPIRATION“My inspiration for my orb shaped controller came from watching my 5 month old son play with a ball. It made me think about how we learn to play as children and the commonality of the ball as a tool for play across all races, ages, and both sexes. Every human being knows what a ball is and how to hold it, throw it, or manipulate it in their hands. This revelation made me realize that even after the loss of a hand many amputees still choose to play games involving balls like baseball (“About The WWAST”). It is my own opinion that the familiarity with the shape of the ball and the ease of control the amputee has over the ball is what leads many back to playing games with balls. If I could find a way to incorporate the familiar ball shape into a controller then I could possibly encourage more amputees to play video games.” –SETH EDENS

DALTON’S DESIGN INSPIRATION“I used the Xbox 360 controller as my inspiration. I incorporated all the necessities into the controller that I could fit. I kept in mind one of my all-time favorite games, Halo Wars (Ensemble Studios, 2009). I took the 4 buttons from the controller along with the start and back buttons. From there, I had to figure out how to get two analog sticks onto the controller. I thought of using the player’s wrist to change the camera view, and the player’s thumb in order to move. Going forward, I came to the conclusion that more buttons would make the controller too complicated to use, so I decided that the back button could be used as a ‘change to a new set of commands’ button.” - Dalton DeMorrow

JUSTIN’S DESIGN INSPIRATION“The Catalyst was inspired based on the Saitek X55 Rhino H.O.T.A.S (Hands On Throttle and Stick) controller. The X55 features a ton of buttons on the throttle controller and I thought this could work much better if the Joystick was combined to the throttle. Most fighter pilots pilot an aircraft with one hand. I figured that an Xbox One controller could do the same and help one handed people as well. By merging all of the Xbox One’s critical buttons to the grip of a controller and adding multiple axes to the same grip, you can effectively achieve the same result as a two-handed H.O.T.A.S setup with one hand.” –JUSTIN CLEMENT

TOM’S DESIGN INSPIRATION“My design came from talking with a person at the hospital. The gentleman that I was speaking to used to play lots of video games prior to an accident that he had which removed his left hand. He also explained that the accident also left his right arm and hand weak. He was excited when I told him what I was going to school for. He explained that if he could find a controller that he could use he would love to get back into gaming, but didn’t have the strength to hold a controller. This led me to the idea of having a controller that requires very little arm or hand strength to operate.” –TOM EDENS

DESIGN METHODWe decided to create a one-handed controller for all individuals incapable of use of one of their hands. We decided to go with a sphere controller for the comfortable grip and to make the buttons and analog stick easy to reach and use. We decided to make the button panel into socket-like accessory in order to make the controller easily transition from left handed to right handed use. We decided to makes the buttons into bumpers because we believe it will be easier to press a bumper that you rest ⅓ of your finger on than a button that just uses your finger tip.

DESIGN METHOD (CONT.)• We had 5 original game controllers we

made into one.

• The controller is meant to be used with one hand.

• We utilize an analog stick, 2 buttons, a slider, and a rotational base used as a second analog stick.

• The button panel and unused/blank panel are meant to be rounded to fit flush with the rest of the controller.

HOW EACH DESIGN IS INCORPORATED

• The removable analog stick incorporates both Jussten and Justin’s designs into our team controller.

• The removable panel incorporates Tom’s design concept of flipping the controller to make it accessible for both hands.

• The base incorporates Dalton’s second analog design into an easily manageable location.

• The slider button and sphere shape incorporate Seth’s design

EXAMPLE –SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS

Figure 1. The G.A.M.E.R Controller (Front View)

EXAMPLE –SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS (CONT.)

Figure 2. The G.A.M.E.R Controller (Isometric View)

EXAMPLE –SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS (CONT.)

Figure 3. The G.A.M.E.R Controller (Back View)

Jussten’s DESIGN ASSUMPTIONS“The usability of the controller makes it so that people with no or limited use of a hand can play. (People with both hands or people with just the left or the right hand will have no issues playing with this controller.) Based on studies done on the Wii remote with those who have amputations or developmental disabilities showed that they could still enjoy and even improve on cognitive function (Shih, C., Wang, S., & Chang, M. 2012). I think the industry is moving towards doing more for those who are handicap, allowing them to still enjoy the games they may have thought they had lost.” –Jussten Craddock

Seth’s DESIGN ASSUMPTIONS“The design of the controller was decided upon because I wanted the controller to be spherical like a ball. The incorporation of the thumb stick was to keep in-line with modern game controller standards. The two buttons were added as a nod to the original Nintendo Entertainment System and the slider was included to increase the number of buttons the controller could have. I also chose to use a Six-Axis like motion detection function inside the orb itself. This would most likely be done using some kind of mercury switches to sense when the controller was tilted at a certain angle. This motion sensing function would allow the player to move the controller freely in the directions of X, Y, Z to translate accordingly to the on screen action. I chose to make the controller fully programmable to allow players freedom of choice or as stated by the VoodooIO makers ‘Making it appropriate to their personal preference and gaming needs’ (Villar). For an amputee the ability to customize a controller's function would be more important than for a non-amputee as this would allow for an added layer of comfort and controller recognition.” –Seth Edens

Dalton’s DESIGN ASSUMPTIONS“The design came about as a way to incorporate two analog sticks into a one handed controller to allow the player to use both at the same time. Ever since the analog stick came about, the controllers moving forward have not changed very much in terms of button layout and analog sticks. Most controllers use a dual analog stick for players to move and change the camera angle. This is especially useful when playing a first person shooter (Patent, 2015). Players will have an easy time using the controls because they are a comfortable fit for their fingers.” -Dalton DeMorrow

Justin’s DESIGN ASSUMPTIONS“A grip based design with all of the buttons at the player’s fingertips allow for the player to focus less on button placement and more on movement and freedom. This allows the player to immerse themselves in their game without the need of looking down to see if they are in the correct position of pressing a button. The unilateral design allows for the player to use full range and motion of their wrists so movement is also comfortable and intuitive based on the player’s custom input needs. The major design decision was for the squeezable triggers rather than relying on a traditional paddle based trigger. Tsukuba University in Japan created the Puyocon (Puyocon), which is a ball shaped controller that allows squeezing as an input method to interact with the computer. For the disabled person, changing an input method is just the start, we have to adapt to a changing standard.” –Justin Clement

Tom’s DESIGN ASSUMPTIONS“Having the controller be flat and easily interchangeable to accommodate right and left handed users. Also by using a base that is familiar, a computer mouse, the device will be more widely accepted (Mackay, Wendy E.). Like many thing if we take items that people are already accustomed to and then build on that design we will be more readily accepted than if we try and come up with a completely new and different concept of how to do thing.” –Tom Edens

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CONTROL MAPPINGThe first game that was used for the playtested was Halo Reach. Halo is a First Person Shooter (FPS),for the Xbox 360, this type of game was chosen because of the popularity of the FPS genre.The button configuration is as follows:-Analog stick - moves the player forward/ backwards and strafe left/right, press to zoom-Ball - rotates the camera-Green - Fires weapon-Black Slider Button - Top position - Reload; Middle position - Jump; Bottom position - Melee-Red - Cycle weapons-Menu - Opens System menu-Back - In-game loadout viewer-Start - Pause menu

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CONTROL MAPPING (CONT.)The second game that was used for the playtested was Majesty a Real Time Strategy (RTS) game for the personal computer (PC). This game was chosen to make sure the controller was useable on the PC.The button configuration is as follows:-Analog stick - Zoom the camera-Ball - move around the map-Green - Select unit or building-Black Slider Button - Top position - scroll through king spells; Middle position - select highlighted king spell; Bottom position - Scroll through current build menu-Red - Place flag (to change flag type continue pressing over flag when first placed)-Menu - Not used-Back - Not used-Start - Pause

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CONTROL MAPPING (CONT.)The third game that was used for the playtested was Terraria a 2D side scroller. The button configuration is as follows:-Analog stick - Move-Ball - Aim-Green - Attack-Black Slider Button - Top position -scroll through inventory items ; Middle position - Not used; Bottom position - Not Used-Red - Inventory-Menu - System Menu-Back - Map Screen-Start - Pause

PROTOTYPES

TEST RESULTSTester’s Thoughts

• It was a little awkward for someone with small hands.

• The controller felt comfortable in my hand during the playtest.

• The button layout and assignments made it easy to use, with more practice it would be more fluid.

TEST RESULTS (CONT.)Tester’s Thoughts

• The slider was a little awkward at first might work better with three vertical buttons.

• Using the ball for the camera was difficult to get used to, but was easily adjusted to.

• The analog stick is not necessary to be able to move from one side to the other.

POST MORTEM• What Went Correctly

•This week the team gathered on Tuesday following the holiday to discuss and prepare for this week's assignment. Task delegation went smoothly by asking who would like to do or had experience with each portion of the assignment. This method will be used again in future projects.

•Each team member felt responsible for their own portion of the assignment but also for overseeing each other's work.

•The merger of the controller’s went much better than expected by breaking each individual design down into it’s core concepts and parts and then incorporating those back into our final merged design.

•Playtest went great using 3 different players of varying skills. Also, 2 right-handed players and 1 left-handed player were used to verify results.

• What Went Incorrectly

•Work schedules become hard to work around and the late start due to the holiday on Monday caused some team confusion on when to meet.

•When finalizing our design for the merged controller we did not realize the analog stick did not need to be removable in order to switch from left to right-handed players. Simply moving the button panel changes the entire controller configuration. This was discovered during play test.

POST MORTEM (CONT.)• What Went Incorrectly (Cont.)

•When designing the schematic images of the merged controller Unity was decided upon as the tool of choice due to familiarity. We discovered that Unity does have some limitations when it comes to design. The button panel and unused/blank panel both should be curved to fit flush with the spherical shape of the controller, but due to the limitations of Unity and/or our knowledge of the program, we were unable to create the proper shape for our design.

• What Did We Learn From this Activity and Improve

•By delegating task we were able to avoid having multiple meetings that many team members would not be able to attend due to conflicting work schedules. Instead we opted to frequently check-in via Google Hangouts with the progress of each individual task. This method worked very well and will most likely be used again.

•Unity is probably not the best tool for creating 3D designs without increased knowledge of the program. We should probably have used Maya or another similar program.

•Allowing time for more iterations of our prototype would have resulted in a better play test.

REFERENCESAbout The WWAST. (n.d.). Retrieved September 12, 2015, from http://woundedwarrioramputeesoftballteam.org/about-us/

(n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2015, from https://www.microsoft.com/hardware/_base_v1//products/xbox-360-wireless-controller-for-windows/gm_xboxcw_liquidblk_otherviews01.jpg

Saitek X-55 Rhino H.O.T.A.S. System for PC. (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2015.

SHIH, C., WANG, S., & CHANG, M. (2012). ENABLING PEOPLE WITH DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES TO ACTIVELY PERFORM DESIGNATED OCCUPATIONAL ACTIVITIES ACCORDING TO SIMPLE INSTRUCTIONS WITH A NINTENDO WII REMOTE CONTROLLER BY CONTROLLING ENVIRONMENTAL STIMULATION. RESEARCH IN DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES, 33(4), 1194-1199. DOI:10.1016/J.RIDD.2012.02.008

VILLAR, N. (2007, July 1). The VoodooIO gaming kit: A real-time adaptable gaming controller. Computers in Entertainment.

Patent US8944914 - Control of translational movement and field of view of a character within a virtual world as rendered on a display. (2015, February 3). Retrieved September 13, 2015.

Puyocon: Ball-shaped, squeezable input interface (videos). (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2015, from http://techcrunch.com/2010/01/12/puyocon-ball-shaped-squeezable-input-interface-videos/

Mackay, Wendy E., Anne-Laure Fayard, Laurent Frobert, and Lionel Médini. "Reinventing the Familiar: Exploring an Augmented Reality Design Space for Air Traffic Control." Centre D'Études De La Navigation Aérienne. Web.