Distinctive Features and Game Design

Abstract

UX is a key feature in game design, where it is known as gameplay. Research on how to achieve better gameplay is ongoing, and it can benefit from theoretical frameworks, such as the MDA model, and the DF framework, that we proposed in a previous paper. This paper presents further research about the DF framework. In the course of pilot studies, we created a tentative inventory of DFs, with focus on strategical analysis characteristics. Following this, we offered an extension course, in which enrolled participants were asked to play several modern board games, and to evaluate them according to those characteristics. The collected data was compared to our tentative inventory, and the MDA framework offered a key insight in the analysis. The results indicate that the MDA framework can be used as a guideline for the development of new DF systems, enabling game designers to create better products.