Abstract
Previous studies have reported various potential benefits from playing location-based games (LBGs). These include being outdoors, exercise, decreased sedentary behavior, increased knowledge of surroundings, improved cartographic, geographical and navigation skills, increased social interaction, meeting new people, forming acquaintances and activating people. One of the benefits of LBGs is that compared to other self-help applications and games, they are able to reach demographics who have trouble or are not interested in seeking improvement in their lives. This study focuses on the currently available LBGs (N = 60) and identifies how their gameplay supports the observed benefits of playing the games. The found LBGs were sorted into five sub-genres. At the core of the popular LBGs Pokémon GO and Harry Potter: Wizards Unite were three main game mechanics all supporting each other: (1) moving around to find points of interest (PoIs), (2) travelling to PoIs and (3) walking to trigger game-events. Most gameplay were tied to these, as were also the potential benefits of playing the games. These findings highlight the importance of PoIs, their location and their quality, for maximizing the benefits gained from playing LBGs .
Keywords
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Aal, K., Hauptmeier, H.: Pokémon GO: collaboration and information on the go. In: Proceedings of 17th European Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work. European Society for Socially Embedded Technologies (EUSSET) (2019)
Akkerman, S., Admiraal, W., Huizenga, J.: Storification in history education: a mobile game in and about medieval Amsterdam. Comput. Educ. 52(2), 449–459 (2009)
Alavesa, P., Pakanen, M., Kukka, H., Pouke, M., Ojala, T.: Anarchy or order on the streets: review based characterization of location based mobile games. In: Proceedings of the Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play, pp. 101–113. ACM (2017)
Alha, K., Koskinen, E., Paavilainen, J., Hamari, J.: Why do people play location-based augmented reality games: a study on Pokémon GO. Comput. Hum. Behav. 93, 114–122 (2019)
Alomar, N., Alsaleh, M., Alarifi, A.: Behavioral consequences of Pokémon GO: the exaggerated picture. Comput. Hum. Behav. 90, 223–245 (2019)
Althoff, T., White, R.W., Horvitz, E.: Influence of Pokémon GO on physical activity: study and implications. J. Med. Internet Res. 18(12), e315 (2016)
Apperley, T.H.: Genre and game studies: toward a critical approach to video game genres. Simul. Gam. 37(1), 6–23 (2006)
Arango-López, J., Gallardo, J., Gutiérrez, F.L., Cerezo, E., Amengual, E., Valera, R.: Pervasive games: giving a meaning based on the player experience. In: Proceedings of the XVIII International Conference on Human Computer Interaction, p. 9. ACM (2017)
Arnab, S., et al.: Mapping learning and game mechanics for serious games analysis. Br. J. Educ. Technol. 46(2), 391–411 (2015)
Arsenault, D.: Video game genre, evolution and innovation. Eludamos. J. Comput. Game Culture 3(2), 149–176 (2009)
Bhattacharya, A., et al.: Group interactions in location-based gaming: a case study of raiding in Pokémon GO. In: Proceedings of the 2019 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, p. 587. ACM (2019)
Carbonell Carrera, C., Saorín, J.L., Hess Medler, S.: Pokémon GO and improvement in spatial orientation skills. J. Geogr. 117(6), 245–253 (2018)
Chen, C.M., Tsai, Y.N.: Interactive location-based game for supporting effective English learning. In: 2009 International Conference on Environmental Science and Information Application Technology, vol. 3, pp. 523–526. IEEE (2009)
Clearwater, D.: What defines video game genre? Thinking about genre study after the great divide. Loading... 5(8) (2011)
Colley, A., et al.: The geography of Pokémon GO: beneficial and problematic effects on places and movement. In: Proceedings of the 2017 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1179–1192. ACM (2017)
Dunleavy, M., Dede, C., Mitchell, R.: Affordances and limitations of immersive participatory augmented reality simulations for teaching and learning. J. Sci. Educ. Technol. 18(1), 7–22 (2009)
Erenli, K.: Gamify your teaching-using location-based games for educational purposes. Int. J. Adv. Corp. Learn. (iJAC) 6(2), 22–27 (2013)
Garay-Cortes, J., Uribe-Quevedo, A.: Location-based augmented reality game to engage students in discovering institutional landmarks. In: 2016 7th International Conference on Information, Intelligence, Systems & Applications (IISA), pp. 1–4. IEEE (2016)
Gibson, M.: The powers of the Pokemon: histories of television, histories of the concept of power. Media Int. Austr. Incorporating Culture Pol. 104(1), 107–115 (2002)
Graells-Garrido, E., Ferres, L., Caro, D., Bravo, L.: The effect of Pokémon GO on the pulse of the city: a natural experiment. EPJ Data Sci. 6(1), 23 (2017)
Guardiola, E.: The gameplay loop: a player activity model for game design and analysis. In: Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Advances in Computer Entertainment Technology, p. 23. ACM (2016)
Hamari, J., Malik, A., Koski, J., Johri, A.: Uses and gratifications of Pokémon GO: why do people play mobile location-based augmented reality games? Int. J. Hum.-Comput. Interact. 35(9), 804–819 (2019)
Hashem, T., Kulik, L.: “don’t trust anyone”: privacy protection for location-based services. Pervasive Mob. Comput. 7(1), 44–59 (2011)
Hassler-Forest, D.: The walking dead: quality television, transmedia serialization and zombies. In: Serialization in Popular Culture, pp. 103–117. Routledge (2014)
Hino, K., Asami, Y., Lee, J.S.: Step counts of middle-aged and elderly adults for 10 months before and after the release of Pokémon GO in Yokohama, Japan. J. Med. Internet Res. 21(2), e10724 (2019)
Howe, K.B., Suharlim, C., Ueda, P., Howe, D., Kawachi, I., Rimm, E.B.: Gotta catch’em all! Pokémon GO and physical activity among young adults: difference in differences study. BMJ 355, i6270 (2016)
Hyrynsalmi, S., Suominen, A., Mäntymäki, M.: The influence of developer multi-homing on competition between software ecosystems. J. Syst. Softw. 111, 119–127 (2016)
Isbister, K.: Enabling Social Play: A Framework for Design and Evaluation, pp. 11–22. Springer, London (2010)
Judge, E., Brown, T.: A right not to be mapped? Augmented reality, real property, and zoning. Laws 7(2), 23 (2018)
Juhász, L., Hochmair, H.H.: Where to catch -em all?-a geographic analysis of Pokémon GO locations. Geo-Spat. Inf. Sci. 20(3), 241–251 (2017)
Kohen-Vacs, D., Ronen, M., Cohen, S.: Mobile treasure hunt games for outdoor learning. Bull. IEEE Techn. Committee Learn. Technol. 14(4), 24–26 (2012)
Kuss, D.J., Griffiths, M.D.: Internet gaming addiction: a systematic review of empirical research. Int. J. Mental Health Addict. 10(2), 278–296 (2012)
Laato, S., Hyrynsalmi, S.M., Paloheimo, M.: Online multiplayer games for crowdsourcing the development of digital assets. In: Hyrynsalmi, S., Suoranta, M., Nguyen-Duc, A., Tyrväinen, P., Abrahamsson, P. (eds.) ICSOB 2019. LNBIP, vol. 370, pp. 387–401. Springer, Cham (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-33742-1_31
Laato, S., Pietarinen, T., Rauti, S., Laine, T.H.: Analysis of the quality of points of interest in the most popular location-based games. In: Proceedings of the 20th International Conference on Computer Systems and Technologies, pp. 153–160. ACM (2019)
Laato, S., Pietarinen, T., Rauti, S., Paloheimo, M., Inaba, N., Sutinen, E.: A review of location-based games: do they all support exercise, social interaction and cartographical training? In: Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Computer Supported Education - Volume 1: CSEDU, pp. 616–627. INSTICC, SciTePress (2019). https://doi.org/10.5220/0007801206160627
Laine, T.H., Islas Sedano, C., Vinni, M., Joy, M.: Characteristics of pervasive learning environments in museum contexts. In: 8th World Conference on Mobile and Contextual Learning (2009)
LeBlanc, A.G., Chaput, J.P.: Pokémon GO: a game changer for the physical inactivity crisis? Prev. Med. 101, 235–237 (2017)
Lewin, C., Charania, A.: Bridging formal and informal learning through technology in the twenty-first century: issues and challenges. In: Second Handbook of Information Technology in Primary and Secondary Education, pp. 1–17 (2018)
Liberati, N.: Phenomenology, Pokémon GO, and other augmented reality games. Hum. Stud. 41(2), 211–232 (2018)
Machin, D., Van Leeuwen, T.: Sound, music and gender in mobile games. Gender Lang. 10(3) (2016)
Madill, A., Jordan, A., Shirley, C.: Objectivity and reliability in qualitative analysis: realist, contextualist and radical constructionist epistemologies. Br. J. Psychol. 91(1), 1–20 (2000)
Mallick, S.: Augmenting property law: applying the right to exclude in the augmented reality universe. Vand. J. Ent. Tech. L. 19, 1057 (2016)
Marquet, O., Alberico, C., Hipp, A.J.: Pokémon GO and physical activity among college students. A study using ecological momentary assessment. Comput. Hum. Behav. 81, 215–222 (2018)
Melero, J., Hernández-Leo, D., Manatunga, K.: Group-based mobile learning: do group size and sharing mobile devices matter? Comput. Hum. Behav. 44, 377–385 (2015)
Militello, L.K., Hanna, N., Nigg, C.R.: Pokémon GO within the context of family health: retrospective study. JMIR Pediatr. Parent. 1(2), e10679 (2018)
Ni, M.Y., et al.: Augmented reality games as a new class of physical activity interventions? The impact of Pokémon GO use and gaming intensity on physical activity. Games Health J. 8(1), 1–6 (2019)
Niantic: Pokémon GO live. Website. Checked 31.7.2019 (2019)
Nicklas, D., Pfisterer, C., Mitschang, B.: Towards location-based games. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Applications and Development of Computer Games in the 21st Century: ADCOG, vol. 21, pp. 61–67 (2001)
Oleksy, T., Wnuk, A.: Catch them all and increase your place attachment! the role of location-based augmented reality games in changing people-place relations. Comput. Hum. Behav. 76, 3–8 (2017)
Papangelis, K., Metzger, M., Sheng, Y., Liang, H.N., Chamberlain, A., Khan, V.J.: Get off my lawn!: starting to understand territoriality in location based mobile games. In: Proceedings of the 2017 CHI Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1955–1961. ACM (2017)
Park, K., Cha, M., Kwak, H., Chen, K.T.: Achievement and friends: key factors of player retention vary across player levels in online multiplayer games. In: Proceedings of the 26th International Conference on World Wide Web Companion, pp. 445–453. International World Wide Web Conferences Steering Committee (2017)
Price, S., Jewitt, C., Sakr, M.: Embodied experiences of place: a study of history learning with mobile technologies. J. Comput. Assist. Learn. 32(4), 345–359 (2016)
Rashid, O., Mullins, I., Coulton, P., Edwards, R.: Extending cyberspace: location based games using cellular phones. Comput. Entertain. (CIE) 4(1), 4 (2006)
Rossow, A.L.: Gotta catch a lawsuit: a legal insight into the intellectual, civil, and criminal battlefield Pokemon GO has downloaded onto smartphones and properties around the world. J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 16, i (2016)
Ruiz-Ariza, A., López-Serrano, S., De la Torre-Cruz, M.J., Martínez-López, E.J.: A theoretical-practical framework for the educational uses of Pokémon GO in children and adolescents. In: Geroimenko, V. (ed.) Augmented Reality Games I, pp. 191–202. Springer, Cham (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15616-9_12
Serino, M., Cordrey, K., McLaughlin, L., Milanaik, R.L.: Pokémon GO and augmented virtual reality games: a cautionary commentary for parents and pediatricians. Curr. Opin. Pediatr. 28(5), 673–677 (2016)
Sicart, M.: Defining game mechanics. Game Stud. 8(2) (2008)
Silva, S.D., et al.: Knowledgemon hunter: a serious game with geolocation to support learning of children with autism and learning difficulties. In: 2017 19th Symposium on Virtual and Augmented Reality (SVR), pp. 293–296. IEEE (2017)
Simon, R., Fröhlich, P., Anegg, H.: Beyond location based – the spatially aware mobile phone. In: Carswell, J.D., Tezuka, T. (eds.) W2GIS 2006. LNCS, vol. 4295, pp. 12–21. Springer, Heidelberg (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/11935148_2
Söbke, H., Hauge, J.B., Stefan, I.A.: Prime example ingress reframing the pervasive game design framework (PGDF). Int. J. Ser. Games 4(2) (2017)
Stanley, K.G., Livingston, I., Bandurka, A., Kapiszka, R., Mandryk, R.L.: Pinizoro: a GPS-based exercise game for families. In: Proceedings of the International Academic Conference on the Future of Game Design and Technology, pp. 243–246. ACM (2010)
Stanley, K.G., Livingston, I.J., Bandurka, A., Hashemian, M., Mandryk, R.L.: Gemini: a pervasive accumulated context exergame. In: Anacleto, J.C., Fels, S., Graham, N., Kapralos, B., Saif El-Nasr, M., Stanley, K. (eds.) ICEC 2011. LNCS, vol. 6972, pp. 65–76. Springer, Heidelberg (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-24500-8_8
Tateno, M., Skokauskas, N., Kato, T.A., Teo, A.R., Guerrero, A.P.: New game software (Pokémon GO) may help youth with severe social withdrawal, hikikomori. Psychiatry Res. 246, 848 (2016)
Tenderich, B., Williams, J.: Transmedia branding. EIMO (2014)
Tregel, T., Raymann, L., Göbel, S., Steinmetz, R.: Geodata classification for automatic content creation in location-based games. In: Alcañiz, M., Göbel, S., Ma, M., Fradinho Oliveira, M., Baalsrud Hauge, J., Marsh, T. (eds.) JCSG 2017. LNCS, vol. 10622, pp. 212–223. Springer, Cham (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-70111-0_20
Vella, K., et al.: A sense of belonging: Pokemon GO and social connectedness. Games Culture (2017). https://doi.org/10.1177/1555412017719973
Viinikkala, L., et al.: Reforming the representation of the reformation: Mixed reality narratives in communicating tangible and intangible heritage of the protestant reformation in Finland. In: 2016 22nd International Conference on Virtual System & Multimedia (VSMM), pp. 1–9. IEEE (2016)
Vorderer, P., Hartmann, T., Klimmt, C.: Explaining the enjoyment of playing video games: the role of competition. In: Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Entertainment Computing, ICEC 2003, pp. 1–9. Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh (2003). http://dl.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=958720.958735
Wagner-Greene, V.R., Wotring, A.J., Castor, T., Kruger, J., Mortemore, S.: Pokémon GO: healthy or harmful? Am. J. Public Health 107(1), 35 (2017)
Wake, J.D.: Mobile, Location-based Games for Learning: Developing, Deploying and Evaluating Mobile Game Technology in Education. The University of Bergen (2013)
Wang, D., et al.: Pokémon GO in Melbourne CBD: a case study of the cyber-physical symbiotic social networks. J. Comput. Sci. 26, 456–467 (2018)
Wong, F.Y.: Influence of Pokémon GO on physical activity levels of university players: a cross-sectional study. Int. J. Health Geograph. 16(1), 8 (2017)
Wu, H.K., Lee, S.W.Y., Chang, H.Y., Liang, J.C.: Current status, opportunities and challenges of augmented reality in education. Comput. Educ. 62, 41–49 (2013)
Xian, Y., et al.: An initial evaluation of the impact of Pokémon GO on physical activity. J. Am. Heart Assoc. 6(5), e005341 (2017)
Yip, K.H.: The experience of playing located based game among young adults: findings from a focus group study. Neuropsychiatry (Lond.) 8(5), 1674–1682 (2018)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2020 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this paper
Cite this paper
Laato, S., Pietarinen, T., Rauti, S., Sutinen, E. (2020). Potential Benefits of Playing Location-Based Games: An Analysis of Game Mechanics. In: Lane, H.C., Zvacek, S., Uhomoibhi, J. (eds) Computer Supported Education. CSEDU 2019. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 1220. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58459-7_27
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-58459-7_27
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-58458-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-58459-7
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)