Gamework – A Framework Approach for Customizable Pervasive Applications

Abstract

The number of pervasive games is growing. In a pervasive game players have to interact with their environment in order to control their avatar. While in the past such a game required immense hardware equipment, nowadays, Smartphones have all required functionality built-in already. In addition, there is an upcoming trend towards software, supported with new content and knowledge by an active community. By combining these two trends, a new genre for computer games arises, targeting not only established gamers but also a new audience. In this paper we present a framework for pervasive games that support various customization techniques. Therefore, we divided the techniques into four classes depending on the player’s technical knowledge and scale of adaption potential. Further, we present two customizable pervasive games we have implemented using the framework. Concluding, we show the potential of these games as well as the potential of our framework. We also report on early experiences in exploiting the customization approach of our framework.