1st Edition
Games User Research Cookbook Tools and Techniques for Better Player Experience
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Part 1: User Research for Games
1. What Is a Game, Actually?
2. Player Experience
3. What Is Our Role Then?
Part 2: A Ten-Step Recipe for a Single Study
4. Understanding What’s on the Menu: Selected Methods Overview
5. Getting to Know Your Guests: Stakeholder Mapping
6. Taking Order: Requirements Gathering and Kick-Off Meeting
7. Checking the Pots at Your Disposal: Gathering Assets
8. Selecting and Preparing Utensils: Methods and Tools
9. Organizing Kitchen: Setting and Pilot Study
10. Gathering Essentials: Participants Recruitment
11. Slicing and Dicing: Moderating Research Sessions
12. Cooking Time!: Analyzing Results
13. Composing and Serving the Dish: Reporting and Debriefing
Part 3: A Recipe List – Selected Methods within the Production Cycle
14. Competitor Analysis
15. Concept Test
16. Expert Analysis
17. (Co)design Workshop
18. Team Play Session (or Review)
19. Usability (Play)Test
20. Component Playtest
21. Experience Playtest
22. Diary Study
23. Review Analysis
Index
Biography
Michał Mycka is a games user researcher both by education and practice. His educational background is in psychology (master’s) and economics (PhD). Since 2012, he has provided insights for over 40 games and game-related R&D projects, covering a wide range of genres and platforms. He has worked with developers and publishers ranging from indie to triple-A, such as Gamedust, Klabater, Game Operators, and Ubisoft Reflections, among others. He teaches games user research at Collegium Da Vinci (Poland) and acts as an expert in the Creative Europe Programme.
