This is Bugstepper, a kids’ electronic game that Danish scientists are hoping is the first step in developing computer games that can detect a player’s boredom and up the ante accordingly. Researchers at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense tried out the active electronic game on 56 eight- to ten-year-olds to create a program that predicted just how much fun the kids were having. As well as being asked which versions were the most fun, the kids also had their heart rates measured and their enjoyment of the game assessed visually. All this research should lead to games that can monitor interest in real time, changing strategy if the player gets bored. [New Scientist]
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Bugstepper for Kids Heralds Computer Games that Gauge Boredom
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AddyDugdale
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