Augmenting Team Games With a Ball to Promote Cooperative Play

Team games with a ball provide a great workout and are social activities, making them a great way to spend free time. Unfortunately, it can be challenging to play when the participants' level is not more or less equal. We use digital augmentation technology to promote collaboration during the game and soften the focus that is usually put exclusively on the physical skill levels. Using computer game elements (attack points, defense points, life points) enables us to create a unique mixed reality playing experience that is approachable and enjoyable to various people who have different playing skills. Therefore, it works for promoting physical activity among such players. When designing a fast-paced game with a real ball, taking place in the physical world and the virtual world, special considerations on tracking the game progress, information display, and player experience have to be taken. We describe the development of the augmented dodgeball game, which includes the systems required to play the game and player status display systems. We also present a user study, which consists of questionnaires, interviews, and player-observations. We found that players had a positive experience playing the developed game; they liked the game concept and saw it as a fun activity to do with friends. The players were also communicating and collaborating more during the augmented game. This research contributes to providing design insights specific to designing for augmented reality team games with the ball.