Engagement in digital entertainment games: A systematic review

Since their introduction over 40 years ago, digital entertainment games have become one of the most popular leisure activities globally. While digital games clearly provide highly engaging activities, the nature of this engagement is not well understood. The current study aims to advance our understanding by reporting a systematic review of recent literature addressing engagement in computer games. The papers in the review comprise a sub-sample of papers relating to engagement in digital games that was selected from a broader literature search carried out on the outcomes and impacts of playing computer games. A diverse range of studies was identified that examined varied aspects of engagement in games including subjective experiences while playing games, the physiological concomitants of these experiences, motives for playing games, game usage and time spent playing games and the impact of playing on life satisfaction. A narrative review was carried out to capture these diverse aspects of engagement and to develop a more coherent understanding of engagement in computer games.

[1]  Mirjam Vosmeer,et al.  Playing The Sims2: an exploration of gender differences in players’ motivations and patterns of play , 2010, New Media Soc..

[2]  John L. Sherry,et al.  Sex Differences in Video Game Play: , 2004, Commun. Res..

[3]  Niklas Ravaja,et al.  Oscillatory Brain Responses Evoked by Video Game Events: The Case of Super Monkey Ball 2 , 2007, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[4]  Maja Matijasevic,et al.  Why MMORPG players do what they do: relating motivations to action categories , 2010, Int. J. Adv. Media Commun..

[5]  John L. Sherry.  Flow and Media Enjoyment , 2004 .

[6]  Bartholomäus Wissmath,et al.  Playing online games against computer- vs. human-controlled opponents: Effects on presence, flow, and enjoyment , 2008, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[7]  Robert LaRose,et al.  A Socio-Cognitive Model of Video Game Usage , 2007 .

[8]  Georgios N. Yannakakis,et al.  TOWARDS OPTIMIZING ENTERTAINMENT IN COMPUTER GAMES , 2007, Appl. Artif. Intell..

[9]  Paul A. Cairns,et al.  Measuring and defining the experience of immersion in games , 2008, Int. J. Hum. Comput. Stud..

[10]  Kursat Cagiltay,et al.  A descriptive study of Turkish high school students' game-playing characteristics and their considerations concerning the effects of games , 2008, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[11]  Edward Shih-Tse Wang,et al.  The relationship between leisure satisfaction and life satisfaction of adolescents concerning online games. , 2008, Adolescence.

[12]  Tom Chatfield,et al.  Fun Inc.: Why Games Are the 21st Century's Most Serious Business , 2011 .

[13]  Elaine Toms,et al.  What is user engagement? A conceptual framework for defining user engagement with technology , 2008, J. Assoc. Inf. Sci. Technol..

[14]  Chin-Lung Hsu,et al.  Why do people play on-line games? An extended TAM with social influences and flow experience , 2004, Inf. Manag..

[15]  Christoph Klimmt,et al.  Exploring the Enjoyment of Playing Browser Games , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[16]  Samuel D. Bradley,et al.  Death with a story: How story impacts emotional, motivational, and physiological responses to first-person shooter video games , 2004 .

[17]  Fred D. Davis.  Perceived Usefulness, Perceived Ease of Use, and User Acceptance of Information Technology , 1989, MIS Q..

[18]  Moon-Soo Lee,et al.  Characteristics of Internet Use in Relation to Game Genre in Korean Adolescents , 2007, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[19]  Andrew K Przybylski,et al.  The Motivating Role of Violence in Video Games , 2009, Personality & social psychology bulletin.

[20]  S. McDaniel,et al.  Adolescent smoking intentions: gender differences in peer context. , 1992, Adolescence.

[21]  Ching-I Teng,et al.  Personality Differences between Online Game Players and Nonplayers in a Student Sample , 2008, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[22]  Ching‐I Teng,et al.  Personality and motivations for playing online games , 2008 .

[23]  Cheryl K. Olson.  Children's Motivations for Video Game Play in the Context of Normal Development , 2010 .

[24]  Lyle,et al.  Television in the Lives of Our Children , 1965 .

[25]  István Fekete,et al.  Computer games are fun? On professional games and players’ motivations , 2005 .

[26]  K. Durkin,et al.  Not so doomed: computer game play and positive adolescent development , 2002 .

[27]  Jen-Her Wu,et al.  Falling in love with online games: The uses and gratifications perspective , 2010, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[28]  Dong-Mo Koo,et al.  The moderating role of locus of control on the links between experiential motives and intention to play online games , 2009, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[29]  Lennart E. Nacke,et al.  More than a feeling: Measurement of sonic user experience and psychophysiology in a first-person shooter game , 2010, Interact. Comput..

[30]  Newton Lee,et al.  Anna Marie Piersimoni , 2005, CIE.

[31]  S. Puttonen,et al.  The psychophysiology of James Bond: phasic emotional responses to violent video game events. , 2008, Emotion.

[32]  Gavriel Salvendy,et al.  Effects of different scenarios of game difficulty on player immersion , 2010, Interact. Comput..

[33]  Mark D. Griffiths,et al.  Affect and the Computer Game Player: The Effect of Gender, Personality, and Game Reinforcement Structure on Affective Responses to Computer Game-Play , 2006, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[34]  Eduard Sioe-Hao Tan,et al.  Entertainment is Emotion: The Functional Architecture of the Entertainment Experience , 2008 .

[35]  Mark Stansfield,et al.  Development of a General Framework for Evaluating Games-Based Learning , 2008 .

[36]  Changchun Liu,et al.  Dynamic Difficulty Adjustment in Computer Games Through Real-Time Anxiety-Based Affective Feedback , 2009, Int. J. Hum. Comput. Interact..

[37]  M. Davies,et al.  Online computer gaming: a comparison of adolescent and adult gamers. , 2004, Journal of adolescence.

[38]  Christoph Klimmt,et al.  Effectance and Control as Determinants of Video Game Enjoyment , 2007, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[39]  T. Baumgartner,et al.  Behavioral and Brain Functions , 2006 .

[40]  Nick Yee,et al.  Motivations for Play in Online Games , 2006, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[41]  K. Scherer,et al.  Psychophysiological responses to appraisal dimensions in a computer game , 2004 .

[42]  Laura Aymerich-Franch,et al.  Presence and Emotions in Playing a Group Game in a Virtual Environment: The Influence of Body Participation , 2010, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[43]  P. Vorderer,et al.  Enjoyment: At the Heart of Media Entertainment , 2004 .

[44]  James D. Ivory,et al.  The Effects of Technological Advancement and Violent Content in Video Games on Players’ Feelings of Presence, Involvement, Physiological Arousal, and Aggression , 2007 .

[45]  M. Csíkszentmihályi.  Flow. The Psychology of Optimal Experience. New York (HarperPerennial) 1990. , 1990 .

[46]  Edward L. Deci,et al.  Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination in Human Behavior , 1975, Perspectives in Social Psychology.

[47]  S. Ross,et al.  An exploration of motives in sport video gaming , 2006 .

[48]  Hongxia Zhang,et al.  Analyzing Online Game Players: From Materialism and Motivation to Attitude , 2008, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[49]  Xiaowen Fang,et al.  Personality and enjoyment of computer game play , 2010, Comput. Ind..

[50]  Maria Frostling-Henningsson,et al.  First-Person Shooter Games as a Way of Connecting to People: "Brothers in Blood" , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[51]  Marina Krcmar,et al.  Conceptualizing Media Enjoyment as Attitude: Implications for Mass Media Effects Research , 2004 .

[52]  Jussi Holopainen,et al.  The Psychophysiology of Video Gaming: Phasic Emotional Responses to Game Events , 2005, DiGRA Conference.

[53]  Jeanne H. Brockmyer,et al.  The Development of the Game Engagement Questionnaire: A Measure of Engagement in Video Game Playing: Response to Reviews , 2009, Interacting with computers.

[54]  M. Cheng,et al.  An empirical study of experiential value and lifestyles and their effects on satisfaction in adolescents: an example using online gaming. , 2007, Adolescence.

[55]  Shirley Matile Ogletree,et al.  College Students’ Video Game Participation and Perceptions: Gender Differences and Implications , 2007 .

[56]  Chien Chou,et al.  Gender differences in Taiwan high school students' computer game playing , 2007, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[57]  Gerome Breen,et al.  Behavioral and Brain Functions Dopamine-beta Hydroxylase Polymorphism and Cocaine Addiction , 2022 .

[58]  Maurizio Codispoti,et al.  Aggressive and non-violent videogames: Short-term psychological and cardiovascular effects on habitual players. , 2004 .

[59]  Mark Newton,et al.  Short-Term Psychological Effects of Interactive Video Game Technology Exercise on Mood and Attention , 2008, J. Educ. Technol. Soc..

[60]  Yu-Ling Lin,et al.  A study on the goal value for massively multiplayer online role-playing games players , 2011, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[61]  Richard M. Ryan,et al.  Having to versus Wanting to Play: Background and Consequences of Harmonious versus Obsessive Engagement in Video Games , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[62]  Wen-Bin Chiou,et al.  The motivations of adolescents who are addicted to online games: a cognitive perspective. , 2007, Adolescence.

[63]  Edward L. Deci,et al.  Intrinsic Motivation and Self-Determination , 2004 .

[64]  Katie Sell,et al.  Energy Expenditure During Physically Interactive Video Game Playing in Male College Students With Different Playing Experience , 2008, Journal of American college health : J of ACH.

[65]  Chin-Lung Hsu,et al.  Consumer behavior in online game communities: A motivational factor perspective , 2007, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[66]  M. Salminen,et al.  Increased oscillatory theta activation evoked by violent digital game events , 2008, Neuroscience Letters.

[67]  Angeline Khoo,et al.  Passion and Intrinsic Motivation in Digital Gaming , 2008, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[68]  Marko M. Skoric,et al.  Children and Video Games: Addiction, Engagement, and Scholastic Achievement , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[69]  Joshua M. Smyth,et al.  Beyond Self-Selection in Video Game Play: An Experimental Examination of the Consequences of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game Play , 2007, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[70]  Andrew K. Przybylski,et al.  The Motivational Pull of Video Games: A Self-Determination Theory Approach , 2006 .

[71]  Dennis L. Hoffman,et al.  Marketing in Hypermedia Computer-Mediated Environments : Conceptual Foundations 1 ) , 1998 .

[72]  Christoph Klimmt,et al.  Experimental Evidence for Suspense as Determinant of Video Game Enjoyment , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..

[73]  John Colwell,et al.  Needs met through computer game play among adolescents , 2007 .

[74]  D. Mcclelland,et al.  The Achievement Motive , 1954 .

[75]  Peta Wyeth,et al.  GameFlow: a model for evaluating player enjoyment in games , 2005, CIE.

[76]  Robert J. Vallerand,et al.  On The Costs and Benefits of Gaming: The Role of Passion , 2009, Cyberpsychology Behav. Soc. Netw..