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date: 09 February 2025

Difficulty and Challenge in Video Gameslocked

Difficulty and Challenge in Video Gameslocked

  • Michael Schmierbach, Michael SchmierbachDonald P. Bellisario College of Communications, Penn State University, ORCID: 0000-0002-2765-2602
  • Ryan TanRyan TanCollege of Journalism and Mass Communications, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, ORCID: 0000-0003-2407-0647
  • , and Brett SherrickBrett SherrickBrian Lamb School of Communication, Purdue University, ORCID: 0000-0003-4465-077X

Summary

Video game difficulty relates to several other key concepts in the study of games. Defined here as the player perception of the barriers that stand in the way of completing game tasks, difficulty is a perceptual variable that reflects both designed features and unintentional barriers as well as player skill. Employing this definition can help better elucidate difficulty as a player-focused experience that varies between players, whereas other terms, including challenge and task, can be used to describe design features. Difficulty is related to other concepts, such as demands, flow, and competency, and empirical research has not always effectively differentiated these ideas. Demands represent player understanding of intended challenges. They may be understood differently by different players but are not defined in terms of player mastery. Flow includes a central idea of skill–challenge balance but is also suggested to involve other experiences. Competency may have a non-linear relationship with difficulty, but further research is needed. Measurement of difficulty is still developing, and existing scales that reflect other concepts need further modification or replacement to directly capture difficulty as defined here. Scholarship shows that difficulty is influenced by game features, contextual factors, and individual differences. Aspects such as the complexity of tasks, pace of play, or precision of necessary actions can all amplify the experience of difficulty, as can the consequences for failure. Unusual or unfamiliar controls can amplify difficulty, as can social pressures. Prior research shows that difficulty and challenge influence psychological responses, learning, enjoyment, and other outcomes. Optimal difficulty should involve a moderate level of the variable, but evidence is mixed about where that optimal state exists and often suggests a simple, negative relationship between difficulty and positive experiences. Some advocates have suggested that games encourage players to embrace difficulty in education and other tasks, potentially increasing learning, but evidence is mixed. Specific traits that would make players more tolerant of difficulty remain to be identified. Improved standardization in vocabulary and study design when studying difficulty would be fruitful.

Subjects

  • Communication and Technology
  • Mass Communication

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