1. Spatial Presence
ACHIEVING IMMERSIVE QUALITIES IN VIDEO GAMES

2. What It Is
 “the process by which a media element entices a
person to suspend their disbelief and accept what
they are viewing on a screen or page as actual reality”
 “existing when media contents are perceived as real”
 “experience of media users that they are personally
and physically present in the displayed environment”
 Essentially, it is an illusive technique

3.  Players are put under the
illusion that they are part
of this virtual world
 Can be a conscious or
subconscious decision
 Trading one reality for
another

4. IMPORTANCE

5. Important to both gamers and game developers
 Proven that players who are immersed enjoy the game
more
 Encourages the player to play the game to the fullest
 Keeps players coming back
 Success of a video game is partially based on how
immersive the game is

6. HOW DO WE ACHIEVE IT?

7. Making the player think
 The player should be required to think within the
context of the game
 Important to create situations in the game where the
player’s attention and focus is fully required
 Player is less likely to be distracted
 Trying to sustain the illusion of spatial presence

8. Making the player not think
 Player should think within the context of the game but
not outside of the context of the game
 The game world should be consistent and make sense
 Avoid reminding the player that they are playing a
video game
 Do Heads-Up-Displays, game chat, damage
numbers…etc., pull the player out of immersion?
 What about in-game advertisements?
 Again, trying to sustain the illusion of spatial presence

9.  Psychologists are of the opinion that the more senses
we try to address in a given medium, the more
immersed the subject will become
 Mimicking reality as accurately as possible
Addressing the senses

10. GAME CONTENT AS
SEEN BY THE PLAYER
3D Anaglyph gaming is currently
possible and many gamers
prefer it.
It is still in further development

11. GAME CONTENT AS
HEARD BY THE PLAYER
Gaming audio is already at a
very advanced stage
Is also in further development

12. ADDRESSING THE
PLAYER’S SENSE OF SMELL
Smell-o-vision has existed since
the 60’s but the implementing
technology was poor
Talk of smell-o-vision being
incorporated into movies
Would be a bigger success with
video games

13. ADDRESSING THE PLAYER’S
SENSE OF TOUCH
Soon we may be able to feel
actual pain while playing a game
Tactile Gaming Vest being
developed at the University of
Pennsylvania
Solenoid actuators in different
parts of vest which fire in sync
with game events

14. Other immersive qualities include…
 A story or narrative – adds to the game world and
makes it more believable. Gives the player extra
incentive to play the game
 A complete lack of technical problems – nothing is
more frustrating and ruins a gaming experience more,
than problems like lag, glitching…etc. When prevalent
in a game, it makes it impossible for the player to be
immersed
 Music – creates an ambience. Plays to the players
emotions

15. CONCLUSION

16.  These techniques are some of the ways we can achieve
immersive qualities in a game
 However, not all of these techniques are necessary. They
merely make it easier for the player to suspend their
disbelief
 The techniques are particularly useful and applicable when
designing a modern-day RPG, FPS or other free-roam
adventure game
 The level of immersion is most likely different for every
individual. One player may become instantly immersed in
a game, while another may have greater difficulty
suspending their disbelief playing the same game

17. END