abstract

Artificial Playfulness: A Tool for Automated Agent-Based Playtesting

Authors:

Samantha . Stahlke,

Atiya Nova,

Pejman Mirza-BabaeiAuthors Info & Claims

CHI EA '19: Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

Paper No.: LBW0176, Pages 1 - 6

https://doi.org/10.1145/3290607.3313039

Published: 02 May 2019 Publication History

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Abstract

Usertesting is commonly employed in games user research (GUR) to understand the experience of players interacting with digital games. However, recruitment and testing with human users can be laborious and resource-intensive, particularly for independent developers. To help mitigate these obstacles, we are developing a framework for simulated testing sessions with agents driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Specifically, we aim to imitate the navigation of human players in a virtual world. By mimicking the tendency of users to wander, explore, become lost, and so on, these agents may be used to identify basic issues with a game's world and level design, enabling informed iteration earlier in the development process. Here, we detail our progress in developing a framework for configurable agent navigation and simple visualization of simulated data. Ultimately, we hope to provide a basis for the development of a tool for simulation-driven usability testing in games.

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Gutiérrez-Sánchez PGómez-Martín MGonzález-Calero PGómez-Martín P(2024)A Progress-Based Algorithm for Interpretable Reinforcement Learning in Regression TestingIEEE Transactions on Games10.1109/TG.2024.342660116:4(844-853)Online publication date: Dec-2024
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Sestini AGisslén LBergdahl JTollmar KBagdanov A(2024)Automated Gameplay Testing and Validation With Curiosity-Conditioned Proximal TrajectoriesIEEE Transactions on Games10.1109/TG.2022.322691016:1(113-126)Online publication date: Mar-2024
https://doi.org/10.1109/TG.2022.3226910
Yadgaroff DSestini ATollmar KOzcelikkale AGisslén L(2024)Improving Generalization in Game Agents with Data Augmentation in Imitation Learning2024 IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation (CEC)10.1109/CEC60901.2024.10612178(1-8)Online publication date: 30-Jun-2024
https://doi.org/10.1109/CEC60901.2024.10612178
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Artificial Playfulness: A Tool for Automated Agent-Based Playtesting

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Information & Contributors

Information

Published In

CHI EA '19: Extended Abstracts of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

May 2019

3673 pages

ISBN:9781450359719

DOI:10.1145/3290607

General Chairs:
Stephen Brewster
University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK
,
Geraldine Fitzpatrick
TU Wien, Austria
,
Program Chairs:
Anna Cox
University College London, UK
,
Vassilis Kostakos
University of Melbourne, Australia

Permission to make digital or hard copies of part or all of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for third-party components of this work must be honored. For all other uses, contact the Owner/Author.

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Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 02 May 2019

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Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada

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CHI '19

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SIGCHI

CHI '19: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

May 4 - 9, 2019

Glasgow, Scotland Uk

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Overall Acceptance Rate 6,164 of 23,696 submissions, 26%

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CHI 2025

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ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

April 26 - May 1, 2025

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Cited By

View all

Gutiérrez-Sánchez PGómez-Martín MGonzález-Calero PGómez-Martín P(2024)A Progress-Based Algorithm for Interpretable Reinforcement Learning in Regression TestingIEEE Transactions on Games10.1109/TG.2024.342660116:4(844-853)Online publication date: Dec-2024
https://doi.org/10.1109/TG.2024.3426601
Sestini AGisslén LBergdahl JTollmar KBagdanov A(2024)Automated Gameplay Testing and Validation With Curiosity-Conditioned Proximal TrajectoriesIEEE Transactions on Games10.1109/TG.2022.322691016:1(113-126)Online publication date: Mar-2024
https://doi.org/10.1109/TG.2022.3226910
Yadgaroff DSestini ATollmar KOzcelikkale AGisslén L(2024)Improving Generalization in Game Agents with Data Augmentation in Imitation Learning2024 IEEE Congress on Evolutionary Computation (CEC)10.1109/CEC60901.2024.10612178(1-8)Online publication date: 30-Jun-2024
https://doi.org/10.1109/CEC60901.2024.10612178
Lee SLaw MHoffman G(2024)When and How to Use AI in the Design Process? Implications for Human-AI Design CollaborationInternational Journal of Human–Computer Interaction10.1080/10447318.2024.2353451(1-16)Online publication date: 22-May-2024
https://doi.org/10.1080/10447318.2024.2353451
Fernandes PLopes MPrada R(2024)Data Driven Agents for User Experience TestingVideogame Sciences and Arts10.1007/978-3-031-51452-4_1(3-18)Online publication date: 3-Jan-2024
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-51452-4_1
Albaghajati AAhmed M(2023)Video Game Automated Testing Approaches: An Assessment FrameworkIEEE Transactions on Games10.1109/TG.2020.303279615:1(81-94)Online publication date: Mar-2023
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Sestini ABergdahl JTollmar KBagdanov AGisslén L(2023)Towards Informed Design and Validation Assistance in Computer Games Using Imitation Learning2023 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG)10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333234(1-8)Online publication date: 21-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333234
Gillberg JBergdahl JSestini AEakins AGisslén L(2023)Technical Challenges of Deploying Reinforcement Learning Agents for Game Testing in AAA Games2023 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG)10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333194(1-8)Online publication date: 21-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333194
Ahlberg WSestini ATollmar KGisslén L(2023)Generating Personas for Games with Multimodal Adversarial Imitation Learning2023 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG)10.1109/CoG57401.2023.10333167(1-8)Online publication date: 21-Aug-2023
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Fisher J(2023)Centering the Human: Digital Humanism and the Practice of Using Generative AI in the Authoring of Interactive Digital NarrativesInteractive Storytelling10.1007/978-3-031-47655-6_5(73-88)Online publication date: 31-Oct-2023
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-47655-6_5
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Charting the Uncharted with GUR: How AI Playtesting Can Supplement Expert Evaluation

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