Understanding Player’s Gesture-Based Communicative Behavior in MOBA Games

Prior research has shown that gesture-based communication plays an integral role in online multiplayer games, especially for teams consisting of strangers with no prior common experiences. What motivates a particular form of in-game communication and its impact, especially promptly after a communication attempt, on team performance is less explored. In this paper, we present a framework for studying individual communication attempts using a gestured-based tool, "Ping", in a popular MOBA game, Heroes of the Storm. We design a framework to capture the game's situational context prior to the communication, the communication attempt, and its immediate impact. Using this framework, we analyze and identify game factors that influence players' decisions to communicate and their choice of communication. We also present how communication has an immediate positive effect on the team's performance. Our findings further the discussion of studying communication behaviors for virtual teams engaging in synchronous, collaborative work with shared visual spaces.