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The 4 Fun Keys
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GDC 2008
Halo vs. Facebook: The Emotions that Drive Play
San Francisco CA Feb 18-22
O'Reilly ETech 2008
Halo vs. Facebook: Emotion and the Fun of Games
San Diego CA March 3-6

Play the New iPhone Game
Tilt: a game in 1.5 dimensions


XEODesign in the News
Hollywood Reporter
Videogames that Watch Back
Gamasutra
Constraint is Design



More
>> Why We Play Games
+ Emotion in Games
+ Game Design Principles

Downloads & Links
+ Why We Play Games:
4 Keys to More Emotion
(pdf)

+ In Italiano
(Italian Translation)

+ Why We Play Games Together: The People Factor (pdf)
+ The People Factor: Diner Dash Case Study (pdf)

+ The Future Salon
+ HP Labs and Fun

The 4 Fun Keys

The 4 Fun Keys
Put Emotion into Play

"Most informative talk at GDC.
Every designer should learn
how to read this language."
-Will Wright, Creator of The Sims
at GDC 2004

Why We Play Games: 4 Keys to More Emotion (download pdf

New iPhone PX



We used the 4 Fun Keys to design Tilt the first motion controlled game you play on the iPhone.

Play Tilt Now!

Emotion and the Fun of Games
As experts in player experiences we see a huge gap between "market research" and what players most enjoy about play. Players may check "good graphics" on a online survey, but our cross-genre contextual research reveals a more interesting story. We know how games deliver more emotions than frustration, excitement, and fear. The secret is in the gameplay.  

The 4 Fun Keys create games' four most important emotions:
1. Hard Fun: Fiero - in the moment personal triumph over adversity
2. Easy Fun: Curiosity
3. Serious Fun: Relaxation and excitement
4. People Fun: Amusement

These four main reasons why people play games are how best sellers create more emotions for more captivating play. Each key unlocks a different set of play experiences. Because players alternate between them during a single play session best selling games offer at least three of the 4 Fun Keys. Only XEODesign's methods take advantage of the 4 Fun Keys to heighten player emotions.

Nicole Lazzaro, President, of XEODesign,® Inc. has shared the insights and analysis from XEODesign's independent player research with the game development and human-computer interaction communities. Now that knowledge is available to you.

First presented at the Game Developers Conference in 2004; Why We Play Games: 4 Keys to More Emotion shares one slice of what we have learned from our independent cross-genre research on gamers. Learn more about Hard Fun, Easy Fun, Serious Fun, and People Fun by contacting us or download the white paper abstract here

The 4 Fun Keys create emotion from interaction in productivity software as well as games. Usability only focuses on minimizing complexity and reducing user frustration. XEODesign's 4 Fun Keys increase user motivation by harnessing the power of play.

Contact  XEODesign: If you would like a copy of the presentation slides and more information about the 4 Fun Keys contact us at info@xeodesign.com or  510.658.8077.



Copyright 2005-2007 XEODesign,Inc.