Audience Participation Games

TLDR

Audience Participation Games blur the line between audience and player, allowing audience members to impact gameplay meaningfully, and their recent rise in popularity has created new opportunities for game research and development. To better understand this design space, we developed several versions of two prototype games as design probes. We livestreamed them to an online audience to develop a framework for audience motivations and participation styles, to explore how mechanics affect audience members' sense of agency, and to identify promising design spaces. Our results show the breadth of opportunities and challenges that designers face in creating engaging Audience Participation Games.

Abstract

Audience Participation Games challenge traditional assumptions about gameplay by blurring the line between audience and player, allowing audience members to impact gameplay in a meaningful way. Their recent rise in popularity has created new opportunities for game research and development. To better understand this design space, we developed several versions of two prototype games as design probes. We livestreamed them to an online audience in order to develop a framework for audience motivations and participation styles, to explore ways in which mechanics can affect audience members' sense of agency, and to identify promising design spaces. Our results show the breadth of opportunities and challenges that designers face in creating engaging Audience Participation Games.