Professor GraceACM Publications
The following is a subset of publications provided through the ACM (Association of Computing Machinery). Clicking these links will provide free access to content that may be pay-walled.
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editorial
Social Impact Games, a Probable Future Illuminated by Looking Back
Social Impact Games are created to address varied societal challenges. Future innovations in social impact game design are likely to come through the researchers and practitioners that not only make such games, but shape the way we design, develop, employ,...
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keynote
Play as Interface
This talk outlines the propensities of play to improve human computer interaction. Drawing from his experience addressing complex problems in journalism, misinformation, education, and more the talk outlines the theories that underpin applying play as ...
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research-article
Awkward Annie:: Impacts of Playing on the Edge of Social Norms
Effective interpersonal and cross-cultural communication relies on pragmatics – knowing what to say to whom, and under what circumstances. Nevertheless, pragmatics is generally absent from formal second language instruction. The current effort describes ...
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extended-abstract
Pilot Case Study in Games as Polling Systems, Generating Knowledge about Fake News
This research reports on heuristics in the design and implementation of games as polling systems. Adapting previous research in human computation games, this paper examines the opportunity to collect player opinion through game mechanics. The goal is to ...
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extended-abstract
The Effect of Positive and Negative Goal Orientation and Player Embodiment in Assessment Games
While much research has been done on games as engaging strategies for assessment and education, little has been done to address the specific human computer interaction questions relating to the impact of player engagement in game experiences. This case ...
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extended-abstract
Factitious: Large Scale Computer Game to Fight Fake News and Improve News Literacy
This case study describes a game designed to serve as new literacy education tool, playful polling system for research audience perceptions. The game underwent two primary designer iterations. As a result of design changes and renewed political chatter ...
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research-article
Newsjam: Making Games at the Pace of News
Can games be made at the pace of news? The Newsjam, an event held in Miami, Florida in November of 2017, aimed to investigate whether short, simple games about current topics could be made in less than two days. While the plethora of game jam events ...
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research-article
Heuristics from Curating and Exhibiting Game Art in the 21st Century
This paper outlines experiences and lessons learned in organizing a variety of digital art exhibits for small and large scale events. The perspective is provided as a cross-disciplinary set of heuristics, drawing on the decade long experience of the ...
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research-article
Affect and Experience: Case Studies in Games and Test-Taking
The format of conventional assessments (e.g., multiple-choice) can often make it difficult for students to be motivated or engaged, which can also make it difficult for students to perform to the best of their ability. Game-based assessments (GBA) are a ...
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research-article
How game design thinking becomes engagement design
This paper is the product of 12 months of intensive study applying game design to the challenges of journalism and news community management. After conducting interviews and site visits with a wide variety of leaders in major print, web, television and ...
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research-article
A simple multi-player video game framework for experimenting and teaching cultural understanding
We have created a game called Culture Code that allows researchers and teachers to host online games where teams have asynchronous abilities. Inspired by the game Barnga [11], which is designed to "explore factors related to communication problems in ...
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short-paper
Deciphering Hackathons and Game Jams through Play
One of the many challenges facing the growth and proliferation of game jam communities is the ambiguity between game jams and allied activities including hackathons and other high intensity events. This research identifies the distinguishing ...
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poster
Designing microgames for assessment: a case study in rapid prototype iteration
In contrast to the trend toward large scale, immersive games that aspire toward the polish and experience of conventional commercial games, the authors offer a design case study for the potential of microgames and assessment. Microgames are designed to ...
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demonstration
VerilogTown: cars, crashes and hardware design
VerilogTown is a game about cars, crashes and hardware design. The game is designed to help teach and practice the hardware description language, Verilog. The game uses the metaphor of traffic signals to help players understand and practice the code ...
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research-article
Did you see that?: in-game advertising retention in players and onlookers
The effects of embedding advertising in digital games has been explored in only a few controlled studies. This research provides results of an efficacy analysis of in-game advertising within the controlled environment of a racing car game, an ...
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research-article
You: a poetic game about meaning making and absence
You is a game about play and the illusive pursuit of meaningful play. Each level of the game is about problem solving a space for You to meet objectives while making sense of the in-game content. Using the player character You, the player is both making ...
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short-paper
Adapting games from literature: game verbs for player behavior
This case study outlines a methodology for adapting digital games from literature. The process maps key narrative events to human computer interactions via game verbs. Game verbs are distinct player actions that help the player accomplish their in-game ...
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short-paper
Big huggin: a bear for affection gaming
Today the world of human computer interaction is an impersonal one. It is one where touch is mediated through glass and plastic. Where multi-touch means antiseptic sleek materials with little texture. Why isn't touch more personal? Why isn't touch more ...
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poster
Critical gameplay: designing games to critique convention
This paper discusses the critical gameplay design project and its newest evolution. After being exhibited in several international venues in 2009-2011, the project has evolved to employ a more pointed critique of game culture and how people play. The ...
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research-article
Making and analyzing games: not as art, but as literature
Despite the common tendency to understand computer games as a medium somewhere between film and traditional software, this paper argues for a more appropriate position amongst literature. This writing explores the opportunities in analogizing digital ...
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research-article
A topographical study of persuasive play in digital games
Expanding the bounds of digital educational games, this research describes the characteristics of games designed to modify player perspective, understanding, interests, activities or opinions. These persuasive play games include social impact games, ...
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extended-abstract
User testing of a language learning game for Mandarin Chinese
Polyglot Cubed is an educational game to facilitate the learning of multiple languages. The game is an implementation of contemporary theories in motivation, education and entertainment. This document provides the results from a formal user evaluation ...
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research-article
Player performance and in game advertising retention
In game advertising or IGA is an increasingly common means of promoting brands and products. This study seeks to understand the effectiveness of in game advertising by understanding player retention of brand messages. The researchers created a ...
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research-article
Creating critical gameplay design
This paper discusses the critical gameplay design project and its newest developments. After being exhibited in five national and international venues in 2009--2010, the project has been reconstituted with 3 new games that critique specific aspects of ...
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extended-abstract
Critical gameplay: software studies in computer gameplay
The computer game software with which we interact on a daily basis not only entertains us, it trains us into specific patterns. Critical Gameplay is a design practice which endeavors to expose and redesign the patterns to which standard gameplay ...
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research-article
Music box: composing and performing visual music
Music Box is an artistic implementation of emergent behavior and its use to create music. Music Box employs Craig Reynold's flocking algorithm to display animated notes that rise from a written score, then move to create a distinctive flock-lead musical ...
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research-article
Critical gameplay
How do games effect the way we problem solve, socialize, or even view the world? When we shoot do we learn to destroy obstacles instead of work around them? Does the binary world of enemies and adversaries teach us to ignore the gray in the everyday? ...
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research-article
Polyglot Cubed: the design of a multi-language learning game
Polyglot Cubed is an educational game to facilitate the learning of multiple languages. It is designed to entertain while enforcing language listening comprehension. The modular language learning game system works interchangeably with a variety of ...
