Hits, Quits, and Retries - Player Response to Failure in a Challenging Video Game

Abstract

While play theorists agree that failure is an integral part of a play experience, there is little research on what players consider failure in video games, or how they respond when failure is encountered. This study uses behaviorally-coded gameplay videos and data-driven retrospective interviews to investigate how players think about and respond to failure in Cuphead, a notoriously challenging “run ’n gun” platformer video game. Emergent patterns show a link between how psychologists measure reactions to failure, known as "mastery orientation" and in-game behaviors, predicting both higher or lower mastery orientation scores. Player interview responses also show a range of ways that players experience failure beyond hard-coded failure (losing health or dying), including poor performance in a section already completed, lack of progress, or giving up. This research deepens our understanding of the role failure plays in one of our most pervasive media, developing our understanding of how players experience failure and the behaviors they take in response.