Adding choice and progress features made an exercise game more fun to play.

The study

1. 01

   Who took part

   160 students at one large US university, with an average age of 21. 111 were men and 49 were women. All were not very active and played video games for at least an hour a month.

2. 02

   What they did

   Each student played a 15-minute exercise game in one of four versions. Two sets of features were each switched on or off. One set was choices and custom characters. The other was difficulty that changes, a progress meter and badges.

3. 03

   What happened

   Students whose game had choice or progress features said they wanted to play again more, and said they enjoyed it more. Students whose game had progress features also felt more confident about using it to exercise. Neither set of features changed how much effort students said they put into the game.

What the study found

1. Helped

   Students whose game gave choices or tracked progress said they wanted to play again more than other students.

   • Rule: Make it enjoyabletested

   Randomised trial of 160 students who play video games and exercise little · vs students whose game had those features off · they rated themselves · ⚠ summary claims more than the results show

2. Helped

   Students whose game gave choices or tracked progress said they enjoyed it more than other students.

   • Rule: Make it enjoyabletested

   Randomised trial of 160 students who play video games and exercise little · vs students whose game had those features off · they rated themselves · ⚠ summary claims more than the results show

3. Helped

   Students whose game changed how hard it got and tracked progress felt more confident about exercising with it.

   • Rule: Make it enjoyabletested

   Randomised trial of 160 students who play video games and exercise little · vs students whose game had those features off · they rated themselves · ⚠ summary claims more than the results show

4. No difference

   Choices and progress features did not change how much effort students said they put into the game.

   • Rule: Make it enjoyableused

   Randomised trial of 160 students who play video games and exercise little · vs students whose game had those features off · they rated themselves · ⚠ summary claims more than the results show

Source