Meaningful Gameplay Design and the Effect on Eudaimonic and Hedonic Gaming Experience

Abstract

Past research has looked into meaningfulness in video game narratives, as well as meaningful play. However, more empirical studies are needed to understand the mechanisms of meaningful play. This paper first investigates how the design of game dialogues may enable meaningfulness in video games (eudaimonic gaming experience) and how it relates to game enjoyment (hedonic gaming experience). Second, it also examines how meaningful play influences prosocial attitudes toward culturally different outgroups. A pre-posttest experiment of a management game was conducted with 174 adult participants. Participants were randomly assigned to either a game with moral scenarios or one without. Results showed that participants who played the game with moral decision-making perceived a higher level of meaningfulness and game enjoyment. No significant relationship was found between perceived meaningfulness and intergroup perceptions.