Introduction: This study describes and compares the behavior of hyperactive and control children playing video games. Subjects and methods: The sample consisted of 29 ADHD children and 21 controls aged between 6 and 16 years playing video games. We used the Child Behavior Checklist and the Problem Videogame Playing scale (PVP scale). This instrument gives objective measures of problem use, which can be considered as an indication of addictive videogame playing. We designed a questionnaire for the parents, eliciting qualitative information about their child's videogame playing. There were no significant differences concerning frequency or duration of play between ADHD children and controls but differences were observed on the PVP scale. None of the controls scored above four whereas 10 hyperactive children answered affirmatively to five or more questions. These children presented a greater intensity of the disorder than the other ADHD children. Conclusion: While no differences concerning video game use were found, ADHD children exhibited more problems associated with videogame playing. It seems that a subgroup of ADHD children could be vulnerable to developing dependence upon video games. \copyright2007 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved. Read more...

We analyzed heart rate (HR), systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP), oxygen consumption, and carbon dioxide production in 17 male adolescents during a racing simulation video game (VG) and compared to resting state (RS) and exercise testing (ET) measures. We were able to demonstrate a significant (p<.005) increase from RS to VG concerning HR (+13.1 bpm), SBP (+20.8 mmHg), and DBP (+12.1 mmHg) with SBP and DBP elevations exceeding 2 SD in all children and 14/17 children, respectively. The energy consumption during VG (max 1.71 kcal/min) was unaltered compared to RS and significantly lower compared to ET even at the starting strain of 25 W (1.94 kcal/min). Hemodynamic parameters tested demonstrated lower HR, unchanged SBP, and higher DBP during the VG compared with ET. Comparing all measured parameters it can be said that the relation of blood pressure and energy consumption during VG might not be favorable. Copyright \copyright2007 Society for Psychophysiological Research. Read more...

Machinima is a technique that relies on the use of 3D game engines to generate a recorded performance in virtual worlds. It is rooted in the gaming community and the interactive access that is part of games’ nature but it also applies cinematic language. Technically, it can be realized as a linear video, a recorded event-world, or a ‘live performance,’ with each form offering different possibilities and limitations. All three forms are interconnected and share some key elements. Four of these elements are the remediation of cinematic effects and of the underlying game engine that leads to a form of virtual puppetry and hyperrealism. These features describe a wide range of expressions – especially concerning the rich visual stylization – as well as severe limitations – particularly in the actors’ controls and animations. They position Machinima in a rough framework of expressive features. Offering the highest level of interactive functionality, the ‘live performance’ Machinima has the most potential for interactive storytelling. Three main examples from different fields exemplify this potential. It is here that Machinima offers access to new forms that combine cinematic visualization and live performance. Read more...

Motivating burned children to participate actively in rehabilitation at the burn unit demands many creative ideas. To avoid resistance from the child towards the exercises, it is important to offer a variety of techniques. A new play technique is outlined here, based on the use of video games, that is capable of motivating and stimulating children of all ages - even the youngest - towards active participation in rehabilitation. Read more...

An explanatory study is conductedto examine the different kinds of rules in video games. Two layers of game, the abstract and the narrative layer, are explored to unify the study of gameplay and narratives. Derivatives of paidea rules and ludus rules are analyzed in relation to gameplay and narratives. A model is presented to show the relation between rules, gameplay, and narratives. Video games are seen as having two layers, an abstract layer and a narrative layer, which are linked by game rules. It is hence maintained that gameplay and narratives should not be antagonistic; they should be complementary when studying video games. Read more...

This article examines the notion of genre in video games. The main argument is that the market-based categories of genre that have been developed in the context of video games obscure the new medium's crucial defining feature, by dividing them into categories (loosely) organized by their similarities to prior forms of mediation. The article explores the inherent tension between the conception of video games as a unified new media form, and the current fragmented genre-based approach that explicitly or implicitly concatenates video games with prior media forms. This tension reflects the current debate, within the fledgling discipline of Game Studies, between those who advocate narrative as the primary tool for understanding video games, "narratologists," and those that oppose this notion, "ludologists." In reference to this tension, the article argues that video game genres be examined in order to assess what kind of assumptions stem from the uncritical acceptance of genre as a descriptive category. Through a critical examination of the key game genres, this article will demonstrate how the clearly defined genre boundaries collapse to reveal structural similarities between the genres that exist within the current genre system, defined within the context of visual aesthetic or narrative structure. The inability of the current genre descriptions to locate and highlight these particular features suggests that to privilege the categories of the visual and narrative is a failure to understand the medium. The article concludes by suggesting that the tension between "ludology" and "narratology" can be more constructively engaged by conceptualizing video games as operating in the interplay between these two taxonomies of genre. Read more...

Purpose. To examine sedentary behaviours (including television viewing, playing computer games and computer use), diet, exercise and fitness in relation to overweight/obesity in Australian adolescents. Methods. Questionnaires elicited food frequency data, time spent in TV viewing, using computers, other sedentary occupations and physical activity recall. Weight, height and fitness (laps completed in the Leger test) were measured. Results. Among 281 boys and 321 girls, mean age 12 years (SD 0.9), 56 boys (20.0%) and 70 girls (23.3%) were overweight/obese. Greater fitness was associated with decreased risk of overweight/obesity in boys (Odds ratio [OR] 0.74; 95% CI 0.55, 0.99) and girls (OR 0.93; 95% CI 0.91, 0.99). TV-viewing predicted increased risk in boys (OR 1.04; 95'% CI 1.01, 1.06) and decreased risk in girls (OR 0.99; 95% CI 0.96, 0.99). Computer use, video games, and other sedentary behaviours were not significantly related to risk of overweight/obesity. Vegetable intake was associated with lower risk in boys (OR 0.98; 95% CI 0.97, 0.99); greater risk was associated with lower fat intake in boys and girls, lower consumption of energy-dense snacks in boys (OR 0.74; 95% CI 0.62, 0.88) and greater intake of vegetables in girls (OR 1.02; 95% CI 1.00, 1.03), suggesting dieting or knowledge of favourable dietary choices in overweight/obese children. Conclusions. Among these adolescents, fitness was negatively related to risk for overweight/obesity in boys and girls. TV-viewing was a positive predictor in boys and a negative predictor in girls but the effect size was small; other sedentary behaviours did not predict risk. Read more...

This book chapter is an overview of recent research on interactive games and learning and it describes the learning outcomes that have been identified in studies of interactive games. The outcomes are grouped into nine areas: Motivation to learn, Perception and coordination, Thinking and problem solving, Knowledge, Skills and behaviors, Self-regulation and therapy, Self-concepts, Social relationships, and Attitudes and values. The chapter concludes by pointing to processes of learning and skill development that can occur in well designed interactive games and some of the game design strategies that can enhance game-based learning. Read more...

Video games are one of the most popular recreational activities among Americans of all ages, especially teenaged boys and young men. Studies of the health hazards of video-game playing have linked seizures, psychologic disturbances, and other health problems with the games. The study reported here measured changes in blood pessure and heart rate that occurred in 23 young men when they played a video game. The mean systolic blood pressure for the entire group was considerably higher during play than before or after and was significantly higher in novice players than in more skilled players. Heart rate was also significantly higher during play. In view of these results, other cardiovascular changes might be expected to occur during video-game playing. Although the changes reported here were minor, even minor cardiovascular alterations could potentially prove serious in persons with cardiovascular disease. Read more...

This paper explores pathfinding in a video game environment using a waypoint graph, a common way of representing locations in the environment. I take algorithms created by Lars Liden on finding strategic positions for agents within a waypoint graph and extend these algorithms. I demonstrate how the extended algorithms are able to effectively calculate tactical ambush positions and pinch points for any number of agents. The extended algorithms are also able to work in an environment where the agent does not have complete knowledge of the waypoint graph. Read more...