Evaluation of Continuation Desire as an Iterative Game Development Method

When developing a game it is always valuable to use feedback from players in each iteration, in order to plan the design of the next iteration. However, it can be challenging to devise a simple approach to acquiring information about a player's engagement while playing. In this paper we will thus use an evaluation method which focuses on assessing the desire to continue playing as an indicator of player engagement. This feedback can then be applied to detect and prevent any design decisions that would jeopardise a game's level of player engagement. The process is exemplified by a case study concerning a crowd game which is controlled by smartphones and is intended to be played by audiences in cinemas and at venues with large screens. The case study demonstrates how the approach can be used to help improve the desire to continue when developing a game.