Eggventures: Strengthening Connectedness through Coop-Play

Cooperative play has been shown to increase connectedness and enjoyment. We developed Eggventures, a platforming game for two players, to investigate how movement mechanics influence connectedness. In one version of the game, the two players are tied together with a rubber band and have to make use of it to catapult each other through the levels. In a between-subjects study, we compare this to a version with only jumping. We find that both versions offer an enjoyable experience, but that the rubber band version increased player communication. A likely contributor to this is the increased level of challenge and frustration that forced players to engage more with each other to succeed.