Conceptual framework for the usability evaluation of gamified virtual reality environment for non-gamers

Abstract

Loneliness has been shown to have a negative effect on both mental and physical health. Regular video game players always keep themselves busy with the games they love playing. Whereas, non-gamers are mostly involved in other physical/social activities that sustain positive impact on their lives. When it comes to not being able to keep up with these activities, loneliness starts to creep in their lives, especially when they get older. Virtual reality(VR) provides a more accessible option for people to become engaged in physical and social activities from the comfort of their homes as they get immersed into the 3D simulation. This paper proposes a usability framework for (VR) casual game development for non-gamers, that would help developers to get important game elements in pre-production phase avoiding major changes in the production phase. Moreover, when the prototype was tested for user-experience, results were positive, suggesting that the framework we proposed was successful in producing an immersive VR game prototype for our target users. The prototype helped alleviating feeling of loneliness and elevating positive mood.