The UFO-game concept

Control a UFO by using intuitive hand movements and gestures.

The UFO-game concept was created with the primary goal to come up with a simple, intuitive hand-gesture controlled game for the target group of 8-12 year olds. Early on, we therefore decided we should avoid the need for any instructions manual or to rely on heavy amounts of in-game text-based information. Instead we should try to focus on movement as an end in itself. Multiple studies have shown the beneficial effects of using gesture and movement based interfaces such as the Nintendo Wii in e g. cognitive rehabilitation and training. With this in mind we wanted to explore the possibilities of using this kind of interface in the context of a game scenario that involves the manipulation of objects in space, simultaneous movements and intuitive gesture metaphors. Our secondary goal is to give the game educational value in a somewhat quirky humoristic and indirect way with a skeptical twist. In our minds one of the most important missions of any school curriculum should be to teach about the scientific method and promote curiosity and critical thinking. This could of course be achieved in numerous ways and the one we have chosen is intended to do the job by introducing the player to narratives or information that is contrary to what is known through science and hopefully will encourage critical discussion and questioning.

Latest iteration

The Object

The peripheral apparatus necessary for playing the game, superficially consists of a black stretch wristband. It is attached, through several cords, to an opaque box made out of plexiglas, and lit up by four LEDs which, when combined can produce colors in a spectra leaping from red through purple, to blue. The wristband contains a tilt-sensor for detecting the angle of the hand, and a light dependent resistor for reading wether the hand is open or closed (and the levels in between). The box encases, in a clean yet fanciful way, a proximity sensor for reading the distance to (or the vertical movements of) the hand, when placed above.
The entire controller equipment setup is connected through an Arduino control board. The Arduino is powered by the same USB cord that is used to send the sensor data to the computer where the software is running. The software (written in Processing) then interprets the data, and draws the game accordingly. The controller for the UFO-game Hand playing the game.

Scenario of use

The purpose of the UFO-game concept is to facilitate and encourage the development of general cognitive skills, such as simultaneous motor capacity, as well as eye-hand coordination and spatial orientation.
The target-group is 8-12 year old children. But, as previously seen, with for example the Nintendo Wii, adults and elderly may also find the concept of playing digital games through physical, kinetic input, challenging and entertaining.
With the target group in mind, our secondary goal, rather than to teach facts, promote science and curiosity in a write on the nose kind of style, is to do the job in a more subtle way. For example, did UFOs really build the Pyramids of Giza? Or did they have bulldozers? What about the alleged evidence for the presence of UFO:s in human history in general, does it really stand up to scientific scrutiny? How can you distinguish facts from fiction?
Since the UFO-game concept is developed with no particular study in mind, it might fit in various places of a curriculum. Or in another way, the graphic content, and missions, could easily be adapted to fit into a more specified subject of study. For example, if the concept would be used in the context of a biology class, one mission could involve planting life on the pre-historic Earth. A mission including the construction of the pyramids, as seen in our concept prototype, may be beneficial in the context of a history class.

By presenting popular UFO-theories, counterfactual or pseudo-scientific claims and plain absurd or nonsensical information to the child, we hope to produce a spark of curiosity and skeptical thinking. Our goal is for the game content to encourage the player to ask questions. The game will contain some information that differs considerably, or some might say severely, from the curriculum of school literature, and this will hopefully make the child question what is told, and compare and evaluate it to other sources of information.

Early mind map

The production

The first hardware iteration of the UFO-game concept, consisted of a black cardboard box. On the box there were four red LEDs mounted, one in each corner. And in the middle, a Light Dependent Resistor. The controller was a tilt-sensor attached to a velcro band. In the the first software iteration, the mission was simply to land your spacecraft in a clearing. But the especially the thrust control were of inferior quality, and the turn out of the game seemed little but random. Screen from early iteration.

When commencing the second iteration of the concept, we considered the possibility of turning it into more of an educational tool. Instead of just landing the flying saucer, could the mission be about something more? Some brainstorming led to a number of different, potential game scenarios. For example, planting the first life on the primordial Earth and preventing it from being destroyed, building the Great Pyramids of Giza, saving crashed, frozen UFOs on the North Pole or destroy and plunder the city of Atlantis. We also discussed implementing different beams and weapons, including a tractor beam and a laser. Screen from latest iteration.

Early in the process, we decided that the on-screen game challenge, the puzzle, should not to become our main focus. Neither would we take on any design decisions regarding pedagogical methods, or the action of teaching. Based on what Scott R. Klemmer says in How Bodies Matter: Five Themes for Interaction Design (ACM, 2006), concerning that gestures and body movement can help us think and express ourselves, we agreed on rather to focus on the control, the navigation device and the techniques and gestures involved in playing the game.

The first idea was to keep all of the sensors in one hand-worn controller, eliminating the need for a base station in other means than a mere encasing for the Arduino board. Also we wanted to replace the LDR we used for controlling the UFO’s throttle, with a more sensitive infra red proximity sensor. The tilt-sensor, used for balancing the spacecraft in the air, could be replaced by an accelerometer, if the gaming scenario required the extensive position data to behave satisfyingly.
In this iteration we settled with evaluating the concept by the following hardware:

Inside the physical part of the game

When exploring different options for controlling the beam of the ship, we found what we call the “grip metaphor”. What if you could activate the tractor beam, lifting and moving things by grasping them with your hand? The only hand-worn controller were abandoned to leave place for the grip-metaphor, which functions through an LDR. The IR-sensor where built into the base station (also containing most of the wires, the LEDs and the Arduino board). It was of great importance to us that the hand worn controller would be light-weight and easy to wear, or it might hinder the ability to gesture freely. The tilt-sensor was attached to the top of the stretch band (the LDR is attached to the bottom), so when worn, the LDR will be situated in the palm of your hand, reacting when enclosed. This way the gestures used to control the game, form an intuitive and natural movement. The sensor controlling the "gripping" gesture, in the game represented by a tractor beam

Suggested further development

Examples of future improvements that could be considered:

Resources

A .zip with code (Processing and Arduino) as well as graphics, is available here: The UFO-game - source