Synchronized communication and coordinated views: qualitative data discovery for team game user studies

We present a tool for qualitative data discovery that aids researchers in analyzing synchronized log data with audio collected from multiple computers. The tool was originally developed for team games in which the goal of play is to exercise coordination skills. In team coordination games, players cooperate toward a shared objective by communicating effectively and synchronizing their game world actions. To evaluate such games, researchers observe communication between players synchronized with their actions in-game, discovering instances of team coordination. Coordination is a composite of communication and in-game action; thus it is essential to observe both in context. The tool enables simultaneous observation from each player's viewpoint, synchronized with communication using log files and time-stamped audio. Viewpoints and voice tracks can be selectively soloed and muted, enabling researchers to focus attention. The application can be expanded to support logs and audio from other user studies.