The impact of user, system, and context factors on gaming QoE: A case study involving MMORPGs

Abstract

In this paper we present a study evaluating the Quality of Experience (QoE) of players in the case of Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Games. We consider the impact of different influence factors on players' QoE, namely system factors (delay, packet loss, jerkiness, and frame rate), user skill (in terms of game play experience), and context (in terms of action category and social context). In addition to obtaining subjective scores indicating overall QoE, we address the correlations between overall QoE and the following quality features subjectively perceived by players: immersion, interactivity, and fluidity. Results from laboratory tests involving 55 participants playing World of Warcraft (version 5.3.) have shown that player skill and social context affect user subjective evaluation scores. Furthermore, jerkiness and packet loss were found to significantly degrade QoE, while latency did not have a strong impact.