• Question: Is there science behind videogames??

    Asked by #harambeftw to Stephanie, LauraAnne, Katy, Helen, Emilia, Dan, Andrew on 7 Nov 2016.
    • Photo: Dan Gordon

      Dan Gordon answered on 7 Nov 2016:

      Simple answer is yes. Take a game such as FIFA which is very popular and to be honest one of my favourites. The players in the game are all mapped for their body sizes using the same types of software that is used by a biomechanist, this is then mapped onto someone who is running and playing with a ball, this video capture is used for all games. Now think of a game like Call of Duty. Here the publishers have invested time into watching what people look at in earlier forms of the game when playing. They use eye tracking goggles, which allow us to see what you are looking at. That way they can make things more or less obvious in the game.
      Additionally we have the science behind such devices as the WiFit which was massive a few years ago. this was based on the premise that we need to get people more active and this could be in part achieved through playing these physically interactive video games. SO science in all of them.

    • Photo: Emilia McAllister-Jepps

      Emilia McAllister-Jepps answered on 8 Nov 2016:

      That is cool Dan, didn’t know that!

    • Photo: Katy Griggs

      Katy Griggs answered on 8 Nov 2016:

      Great answer Dan. In addition to the science behind the videogames, research is also being conducted to find out how we are affected by video games. For instance research has been conducted to see how our eyes are affected by new technology, such as virtual headsets and how they cause motion sickness for many people.

    • Photo: LauraAnne Furlong

      LauraAnne Furlong answered on 8 Nov 2016:

      Yes, lots of science in the past few years, some of the motion analysis that is used to develop the players images is the same that is used in making films like the Lord of the Rings and Avatar, there is a picture in the ‘work photos’ part of my profile shows what it looks like, when Benedict Cumberbatch was filming Desolation of Smaug (there’s also some cool youtube videos where you can see running and jumping motion analysis too!)

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