User Interfaces and Gaming Performance : How the Type of UI Elements Impact Player Performance in FPS Games

Sammanfattning: Electronic sports (esports) is an activity in which players compete against each other in video games. It could be beneficial for the esports industry if players were to perform more consistently. The user interface in the game is one aspect that could impact player performance. In this study, the six user interface element types defined by Fagerholt and Lorentzon in 2009 were used as the context for comparing player performance. The purpose of this thesis was to discover how the graphical user interface of competitive first-person shooter (FPS) games affect the player’s ability to perform mechanically and comprehend information, as well as determining what players value in such user interfaces. This was achieved through the use of experiments and interviews in the context of a game that was developed for this study. In the game, the participants played through levels with different user interfaces in which player performance was tracked. This study discovered that the diegetic user interface performed the best in mechanical performance and information comprehension. Meta-perception resulted in some of the worst mechanical performance. More cluttered user interfaces appeared to worsen reaction times. There was also a vague indication suggesting that more cluttered user interfaces worsen information comprehension. In terms of user preferences, the non-diegetic user interface was the most preferred. In contrast, the participants preferred the geometric user interface the least. Through the thematic analysis, it was discovered that various factors may be beneficial to consider when designing user interfaces using different types of elements. The factors are beneficial to consider because they may affect player performance. The factors are concerned with the following: information balance, contrast, clutteredness, use of numbers, position of elements, use of health bars, element sizes and presentation of ammunition stacks. However, further studies generating statistically significant results would be required to confirm these insights.