Augmented dodgeball: extended abstract

Abstract

Playing team games is fun, but it can be challenging to put a team together. For the best gaming experience, the teams should have equal skill levels. Also, among the same team, the player's abilities should be comparable. In order to compensate the differences in the physical world, we add a virtual layer to the game. The virtual layer allows us to add sophisticated balancing system and additional rules to the game. Using this we developed augmented dodgeball, a team game that takes place in two different dimensions: the physical world and the virtual world. The action in the physical world (like getting hit by the ball) will result an impact to the player in the virtual world. The strength of that impact depends on the virtual powers of the character(s) involved in the action. All players have virtual powers like attack and defense power and are equipped with life points. Using these virtual parameters, we have created virtual player roles that the players can act upon. With this, physical skills can be balanced with virtual powers and the game becomes more strategical and does not rely solely on the physical skills of the player.