Analyzing Patterns of Gameplay Data to Improve the Design of a Simulation Game

• In Event: Instructional Technology SIG: Simulations, Games, Multimedia, and Mobile Learning

Abstract

Fidelity refers to the accuracy with which a simulation represents reality. Types of fidelity include perceptual fidelity, functional fidelity, and model fidelity. The literature on simulation design refers to the assurance of model fidelity as verification and validation. Verification is intended to ensure that the computational model is consistent with the conceptual model of a real-world system. In this study, we tested a proposed method of model verification by using an existing simulation game as a case study. We employed pattern analysis to compare patterns of actions and outcomes in the simulation game with patterns predicted by a conceptual model to be successful in the real world. The method exposed discrepancies between the models that suggest design modifications.

Author

• Rodney D. Myers, Indiana University