Query: Video game

title: General Video Game AI: A Multitrack Framework for Evaluating Agents, Games, and Content Generation Algorithms
abstract: General video game playing aims at designing an agent that is capable of playing multiple video games with no human intervention. In 2014, the General Video Game Artificial Intelligence (GVGAI) competition framework was created and released with the purpose of providing researchers a common open source and easy to use platform for testing their artificial intelligence (AI) methods with potentially infinity of games created using the video game description language (VGDL) The framework has been expanded into several tracks during the last few years to meet the demands of different research directions. The agents are required either to play multiple unknown games with or without access to game simulations, or to design new game levels or rules. This survey paper presents the VGDL, the GVGAI framework, existing tracks, and reviews the wide use of GVGAI framework in research, education, and competitions five years after its birth. A future plan of framework improvements is also described.

title: Meta Analysis of Action Video Game Impact on Perceptual, Attentional, and Cognitive Skills
abstract: The ubiquity of video games in today's society has led to significant interest in their impact on the brain and behavior and in the possibility of harnessing games for good. The present meta analyses focus on one specific game genre that has been of particular interest to the scientific community action video games, and cover the period 2000 2015. To assess the long lasting impact of action video game play on various domains of cognition, we first consider cross sectional studies that inform us about the cognitive profile of habitual action video game players, and document a positive average effect of about half a standard deviation (g 0.55) We then turn to long term intervention studies that inform us about the possibility of causally inducing changes in cognition via playing action video games, and show a smaller average effect of a third of a standard deviation (g 0.34) Because only intervention studies using other commercially available video game genres as controls were included, this latter result highlights the fact that not all games equally impact cognition. Moderator analyses indicated that action video game play robustly enhances the domains of top down attention and spatial cognition, with encouraging signs for perception. Publication bias remains, however, a threat with average effects in the published literature estimated to be 30% larger than in the full literature. As a result, we encourage the field to conduct larger cohort studies and more intervention studies, especially those with more than 30 hours of training.

title: Video game addiction in emerging adulthood: Cross sectional evidence of pathology in video game addicts as compared to matched healthy controls.
abstract: The Internet Gaming Disorder Scale (IGDS) is a widely used measure of video game addiction, a pathology affecting a small percentage of all people who play video games. Emerging adult males are significantly more likely to be video game addicts. Few researchers have examined how people who qualify as video game addicts based on the IGDS compared to matched controls based on age, gender, race, and marital status.  The current study compared IGDS video game addicts to matched non addicts in terms of their mental, physical, social emotional health using self report, survey methods.  Addicts had poorer mental health and cognitive functioning including poorer impulse control and ADHD symptoms compared to controls. Additionally, addicts displayed increased emotional difficulties including increased depression and anxiety, felt more socially isolated, and were more likely to display internet pornography pathological use symptoms. Female video game addicts were at unique risk for negative outcomes.  The sample for this study was undergraduate college students and self report measures were used.  Participants who met the IGDS criteria for video game addiction displayed poorer emotional, physical, mental, and social health, adding to the growing evidence that video game addictions are a valid phenomenon.

title: Policy responses to problematic video game use: A systematic review of current measures and future possibilities
abstract: Empirical research into problematic video game playing suggests that overuse might cause functional and psychological impairments for a minority of gamers. Therefore, the need for regulation in the case of video games (whether governmental or self imposed) has arisen but has only been implemented in a few countries around the world, and predominantly in Asia. This paper provides a systematic review of current and potential policies addressing problematic gaming.  After conducting a systematic search in the areas of prevention, treatment, and policy measures relating to problematic Internet and video game use, papers were selected that targeted problematic gaming policies (N 12; six in English and six in Korean) These papers served as the basis of this review.  Policies were classified into three major groups: (i) policy measures limiting availability of video games (e.g. shutdown policy, fatigue system, and parental controls) (ii) measures aiming to reduce risk and harm (e.g. warning messages) and (iii) measures taken to provide help services for gamers. Beyond the attempt to classify the current and potential policy measures, the authors also tried to evaluate their efficiency theoretically and (if data were available) empirically.  Overall, it appears that although several steps have been taken to address problematic video game playing, most of these steps were not as effective as expected, or had not been evaluated empirically for efficacy. The reason for this may lie in the fact that the policies outlined only addressed or influenced specific aspects of the problem instead of using a more integrative approach.

title: Video Game Training Does Not Enhance Cognitive Ability: A Comprehensive Meta Analytic Investigation
abstract: As a result of considerable potential scientific and societal implications, the possibility of enhancing cognitive ability by training has been one of the most influential topics of cognitive psychology in the last two decades. However, substantial research into the psychology of expertise and a recent series of meta analytic reviews have suggested that various types of cognitive training (e.g. working memory training) benefit performance only in the trained tasks. The lack of skill generalization from one domain to different ones that is, far transfer has been documented in various fields of research such as working memory training, music, brain training, and chess. Video game training is another activity that has been claimed by many researchers to foster a broad range of cognitive abilities such as visual processing, attention, spatial ability, and cognitive control. We tested these claims with three random effects meta analytic models. The first meta analysis (k 310) examined the correlation between video game skill and cognitive ability. The second meta analysis (k 315) dealt with the differences between video game players and nonplayers in cognitive ability. The third meta analysis (k 359) investigated the effects of video game training on participants' cognitive ability. Small or null overall effect sizes were found in all three models. These outcomes show that overall cognitive ability and video game skill are only weakly related. Importantly, we found no evidence of a causal relationship between playing video games and enhanced cognitive ability. Video game training thus represents no exception to the general difficulty of obtaining far transfer.

title: Effectiveness of a Binocular Video Game vs Placebo Video Game for Improving Visual Functions in Older Children, Teenagers, and Adults With Amblyopia: A Randomized Clinical Trial
abstract: Importance Binocular amblyopia treatment using contrast rebalanced stimuli showed promise in laboratory studies and requires clinical trial investigation in a home based setting.  To compare the effectiveness of a binocular video game with a placebo video game for improving visual functions in older children and adults.  The Binocular Treatment of Amblyopia Using Videogames clinical trial was a multicenter, double masked, randomized clinical trial. Between March 2014 and June 2016, 115 participants 7 years and older with unilateral amblyopia (amblyopic eye visual acuity, 0.30 1.00 logMAR; Snellen equivalent, 20/40 20/200) due to anisometropia, strabismus, or both were recruited. Eligible participants were allocated with equal chance to receive either the active or the placebo video game, with minimization stratified by age group (child, age 7 to 12 years; teenager, age 13 to 17 years; and adult, 18 years and older) Interventions Falling blocks video games played at home on an iPod Touch for 1 hour per day for 6 weeks. The active video game had game elements split between eyes with a dichoptic contrast offset (mean [SD] initial fellow eye contrast, 0.23 [0.14] The placebo video game presented identical images to both eyes.  Change in amblyopic eye visual acuity at 6 weeks. Secondary outcomes included compliance, stereoacuity, and interocular suppression. Participants and clinicians who measured outcomes were masked to treatment allocation.  Of the 115 included participants, 65 (56.5% were male and 83 (72.2% were white, and the mean (SD) age at randomization was 21.5 (13.6) years. There were 89 participants (77.4% who had prior occlusion. The mean (SD) amblyopic eye visual acuity improved 0.06 (0.12) logMAR from baseline in the active group (n 56) and 0.07 (0.10) logMAR in the placebo group (n 59) The mean treatment difference between groups, adjusted for baseline visual acuity and age group, was 0.02 logMAR (95% CI, 0.06 to 0.02; P .25) Compliance with more than 25% of prescribed game play was achieved by 36 participants (64% in the active group and by 49 (83% in the placebo group. At 6 weeks, 36 participants (64% in the active group achieved fellow eye contrast greater than 0.9 in the binocular video game. No group differences were observed for any secondary outcomes. Adverse effects included 3 reports of transient asthenopia.  The specific home based binocular falling blocks video game used in this clinical trial did not improve visual outcomes more than the placebo video game despite increases in fellow eye contrast during game play. More engaging video games with considerations for compliance may improve effectiveness.

title: The same video game in 2D, 3D or virtual reality How does technology impact game evaluation and brand placements?
abstract: Video game technology is changing from 2D to 3D and virtual reality (VR) graphics. In this research, we analyze how an identical video game that is either played in a 2D, stereoscopic 3D or Head Mounted Display (HMD) VR version is experienced by the players, and how brands that are placed in the video game are affected. The game related variables, which are analyzed, are presence, attitude towards the video game and arousal while playing the video game. Brand placement related variables are attitude towards the placed brands and memory (recall and recognition) for the placed brands. 237 players took part in the main study and played a jump'n'run game consisting of three levels. Results indicate that presence was higher in the HMD VR than in the stereoscopic 3D than in the 2D video game, but neither arousal nor attitude towards the video game differed. Memory for the placed brands was lower in the HMD VR than in the stereoscopic 3D than in the 2D video game, whereas attitudes towards the brands were not affected. A post hoc study (n 53) shows that cognitive load was highest in the VR game, and lowest in the 3D game. Subjects reported higher levels of dizziness and motion sickness in the VR game than in the 3D and in the 2D game. Limitations are addressed and implications for researchers, marketers and video game developers are outlined.

title: Video game training enhances cognitive control in older adults
abstract: Cognitive control is defined by a set of neural processes that allow us to interact with our complex environment in a goal directed manner. Humans regularly challenge these control processes when attempting to simultaneously accomplish multiple goals (multitasking) generating interference as the result of fundamental information processing limitations. It is clear that multitasking behaviour has become ubiquitous in today's technologically dense world, and substantial evidence has accrued regarding multitasking difficulties and cognitive control deficits in our ageing population. Here we show that multitasking performance, as assessed with a custom designed three dimensional video game (NeuroRacer) exhibits a linear age related decline from 20 to 79 years of age. By playing an adaptive version of NeuroRacer in multitasking training mode, older adults (60 to 85 years old) reduced multitasking costs compared to both an active control group and a no contact control group, attaining levels beyond those achieved by untrained 20 year old participants, with gains persisting for 6 months. Furthermore, age related deficits in neural signatures of cognitive control, as measured with electroencephalography, were remediated by multitasking training (enhanced midline frontal theta power and frontal posterior theta coherence) Critically, this training resulted in performance benefits that extended to untrained cognitive control abilities (enhanced sustained attention and working memory) with an increase in midline frontal theta power predicting the training induced boost in sustained attention and preservation of multitasking improvement 6 months later. These findings highlight the robust plasticity of the prefrontal cognitive control system in the ageing brain, and provide the first evidence, to our knowledge, of how a custom designed video game can be used to assess cognitive abilities across the lifespan, evaluate underlying neural mechanisms, and serve as a powerful tool for cognitive enhancement.

title: The 2014 General Video Game Playing Competition
abstract: This paper presents the framework, rules, games, controllers, and results of the first General Video Game Playing Competition, held at the IEEE Conference on Computational Intelligence and Games in 2014. The competition proposes the challenge of creating controllers for general video game play, where a single agent must be able to play many different games, some of them unknown to the participants at the time of submitting their entries. This test can be seen as an approximation of general artificial intelligence, as the amount of game dependent heuristics needs to be severely limited. The games employed are stochastic real time scenarios (where the time budget to provide the next action is measured in milliseconds) with different winning conditions, scoring mechanisms, sprite types, and available actions for the player. It is a responsibility of the agents to discover the mechanics of each game, the requirements to obtain a high score and the requisites to finally achieve victory. This paper describes all controllers submitted to the competition, with an in depth description of four of them by their authors, including the winner and the runner up entries of the contest. The paper also analyzes the performance of the different approaches submitted, and finally proposes future tracks for the competition.

title: Video Game Addiction: The Push To Pathologize Video Games
abstract: With proposals to include "gaming disorder" in both the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) and International Compendium of Diseases (ICD) the concept of video game addiction has gained traction. However, many aspects of this concept remain controversial. At present, little clarity has been achieved regarding diagnostic criteria and appropriate symptoms. It is unclear if symptoms that involve problematic video gaming behavior should be reified as a new disorder, or are the expression of underlying mental conditions. Nonetheless, the recent proposals around gaming disorder from respected bodies such as the World Health Organization and the American Psychiatric Association seem to lock much of the applied research into a confirmatory trajectory. Since the DSM 5 proposal, research is increasingly focused on the application of the proposed criteria, as opposed to broadly testing validity and necessity of the overarching construct. This raises multiple concerns. First, the current approaches to understanding "gaming addiction" are rooted in substance abuse research and approaches do not necessarily translate to media consumption. Second, some research has indicated that "video game addiction" is not a stable construct and clinical impairment might be low. Third, pathologizing gaming behavior has fallout beyond the therapeutic setting. In light of continuing controversies, it is argued that the currently proposed categories of video game addiction disorders are premature.