Pervasive Games: Bringing Computer
`Entertainment Back to the Real World
`CARSTEN MAGERKURTH
`Ambiente, Darmstadt, Germany
`ADRIAN DAVID CHEOK
`Nanyang Technological University, Singapore
`REGAN L. MANDRYK
`Simon Fraser University, Vancouver, BC, Canada
`AND
`TROND NILSEN
`Human Interface Technology Laboratory, Christchurch, New
`Zealand
`________________________________________________________________________________________
`
`This article gives an introduction and overview of the field of pervasive gaming, an emerging genre in which
`traditional, real-world games are augmented with computing functionality, or, depending on the perspective,
`purely virtual computer entertainment is brought back to the real world.
`The field of pervasive games is diverse in the approaches and technologies used to create new and exciting
`gaming experiences that profit by the blend of real and virtual game elements. We explicitly look at the
`pervasive gaming sub-genres of smart toys, affective games, tabletop games, location- aware games, and
`augmented reality games, and discuss them in terms of their benefits and critical issues, as well as the relevant
`technology base.
`Categories and Subject Descriptors H.5.1 [Information Interfaces and Presentation]: Multimedia Information
`Systems-- Artificial, augmented, and virtual realities
`General Terms: Human Factors, Theory
`Additional Key Words and Phrases: Pervasive games, CSCP, entertainment, ubiquitous computing, pervasive
`computing.
`________________________________________________________________________________________
`
`INTRODUCTION
`1.
`In the precomputer age, games were designed and played out in the physical world with
`the use of real-world properties, such as physical objects, our sense of space, and spatial
`relations. Interactions in precomputer games consisted of two elements: human to
`physical-world interaction and human-to-human interaction. Nowadays, computer games
`have become a dominating form of entertainment due to their higher level of
`attractiveness to game players.
`
`________________________________________________________________________________________
`
`Authors’ addresses: C. Magerkurth, Ambiente, Fraunhofer IPSI, Darmstadt, Germany; email:
`magerkurth@ipsi.fraunhofer.de; A. D. Cheok, Mixed Reality Laboratory, Nanyang Technological University,
`Singapore; email: adriancheok@mixedrealitylab.org; R. L. Mandryk, School of Computing Science,
`Simon Fraser University,Vancouver, BC, Canada; email: rlmandry@cs.sfu.ca; T.Nilsen, Human Interface
`Technology Laboratory, Christchurch, New Zealand; email: trond.nilsen@hitlabnz.org
`Permission to make digital/hard copy of part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee
`provided that the copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage, the copyright notice, the
`title of the publication, and its date of appear, and notice is given that copying is by permission of the ACM,
`Inc. To copy otherwise, to republish, to post on servers, or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific
`permission and/or a fee. Permission may be requested from the Publications Dept., ACM, Inc., 1515 Broadway,
`New York, NY 10036, USA, fax:+1(212) 869-0481, permissions@acm.org
`© 2005 ACM 1544-3574/05/0700-ART4A $5.00
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005. Article 4A.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 001
`
`

`

`•
`
`C. Magerkurth et al.
`
`2
`
`
`Computer games have some advantages that make them more popular than
`traditional games. First, they attract people by creating the illusion of being
`immersed in an imaginative virtual world with computer graphics and sound
`[Amory and Naicker 1999]. Second, the goals of computer games are typically
`more interactive than that of traditional games, which brings players a stronger
`desire to win the game. Third, computer games, usually designed with an optimal
`level of
`information complexity, can easily provoke players’ curiosity.
`Consequently, computer games intrinsically motivate players by bringing them
`more fantasy, challenge, and curiosity, which are the three main elements
`contributing the fun in games [Malone 1981].
`However, the development of computer games has often decreased the users’
`physical activities and social interactions. Computer games focus the users’ attention
`mainly on the computer screen or 2D/3D virtual environments, and players are bound to
`using keyboards, mice, and gamepads while gaming, thereby constraining interaction. To
`address this problem, there is a growing trend in today’s games to bring more physical
`movement and social interaction into games while still utilizing the benefits of computing
`and graphical systems. Thus, the real- world is coming back to computer entertainment
`with a new gaming genre, referred to as pervasive games, stressing the pervasive and
`ubiquitous nature of these games: Pervasive games are no longer confined to the virtual
`domain of the computer, but integrate the physical and social aspects of the real world.
`
`2. PERVASIVE GAMING GENRES
`Despite the nascency of the field, we can already identify several unique types of
`pervasive games, each setting the focus on different aspects of the gaming experience. In
`the following sections, we briefly discuss each of these genres and present some of their
`prominent representatives. We do not claim that either of the proposed game genres or
`the examples discussed are the ultimate realization of pervasive games, but they should
`give the uninitiated reader an idea of the scope and diversity of this exciting and
`emerging field.
`2.1 Smart Toys
`Augmenting traditional toys with pervasive computing technology is a first, and not
`necessarily complicated, step towards the realization of pervasive games.
`Due to their shapes or forms, toys might suggest in which ways they should be played
`withbut in contrast to games, they are not bound by any rules or limitations on their use.
`Thus, they are the perfect means by which to explore the effects that the integration of
`pervasive computing technologies have on the way the toys are used, and on the ensuing
`gaming experiences that might emerge.
`Most current realizations include traditional physical toys equipped with simple
`sensing technology linked to computer logic. The logic reacts to changes in the toy’s
`physical state by either playing sounds or displaying graphical information, if the toy is
`connected to a personal computer. A corresponding computer application might also be
`used for digital storytelling, encouraging children to use the toy in one way or another.
`2.1.1 Zowie Playsets. Zowie playsets are a commercially successful foray into the field of
`smart toys [Shwe 1999]. Zowie playsets consist of a physical toy with movable pieces
`(see Figure 1) accompanied by a CD-ROM and a serial connection to a PC.
`
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 002
`
`

`

`Pervasive Games: Bringing Computer Entertainment Back to the Real World
`
`•
`
`3
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Fig. 1. A Zowie smart toy.
`
`
`The toy has integrated sensors that transmit the state of the playing pieces to the
`computer application. The computer application was crafted after scientific studies with
`children and offers several modes of play (Discovery and Exploration Play, Hands-On
`Active Play, Problem-Solving Play), each fostering different aspects of the children’s
`development.
`The exact sensing technology used by Zowie toys is not publicly available; but in
`general, it consists of a portfolio of patented sensing and recognition technologies that
`track the 3D motion and rotation of pieces. Objects are tagged with a small piece of
`technology and are tracked by an antenna embedded in the toy.
`2.1.2 Story Toy. A rather similar approach to the Zowie playsets was recently presented
`by Fontijn and Mendels [2005]. The StoryToy is a storytelling environment that uses an
`audio replay engine in conjunction with a tactile user interface based on a sensor
`network. The tactile interface consists of an animal farm with a multitude of animals as
`actors.
`In contrast to the Zowie playsets, no computer display is necessary to enjoy the
`various stories and games that come with the animal farm. The authors conducted a study
`to test the toy on children between the ages of two to six. The study demonstrated that
`audio feedback alone already creates an enjoyable level of interactivity, in addition to the
`traditional free play that the toy provides. Given the reluctance of many parents to expose
`their young children to computer displays, it appears to be a promising approach to use
`unobtrusive audio signals as a primary interface instead of traditional interaction with
`graphical user interfaces.
`2.1.3 SenToy. Höök et al. [2003] present an interesting affective control toy, named
`SenToy, used to control a synthetic character in the computer game, FantasyA. SenToy
`is a doll wirelessly connected to a PC. It allows players to influence the emotions of a
`synthetic character in FantasyA. Via SenToy, by using gestures associated with anger,
`
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 003
`
`

`

`•
`
`C. Magerkurth et al.
`
`4
`
`fear, surprise, sadness, and joy, players influence the emotions of the characters they
`control in the game.
`The toy’s hardware is well designed; sensors include two magnetic switches that
`detect the motion of putting hands in front of eyes. To detect walking, force-sensing
`resistors are used in the legs, together with a plastic structure that allows the detection of
`bending leg movements. Accelerometers in the torso of the doll are used to detect all
`movements, and provide a measure of the acceleration in one or two axes.
`Indeed, in a related study, the intuitive expression of emotions via a set of body
`gestures is shown to work. Hence SenToy is a welcome application of pervasive
`computing technology that abrogates the necessity of verbalizing emotional states.
`2.2 Affective Gaming
`One of the goals of pervasive computing is to create context-aware applications that will
`adapt their behavior to information collected from the environment [Abowd and Mynatt
`2000]. The same is true for pervasive games. The who and where of a players’ context
`has been harnessed in some location-based pervasive games (see Section 2.4), while the
`what and when are common elements of most traditional games. Capturing how a player
`is feeling at any given moment and integrating this very personal representation of
`context into a game is the goal of affective gaming.
`Affective computing [Picard 1997] is described as “computing that relates to, arises
`from, or deliberately influences emotions,” and affective gaming aims to integrate a
`player’s emotional state into the game so that the game environment can adapt to create a
`magical game experience. Sensing an individual’s emotional state is a complex and open
`research problem; but sensing certain aspects of a player’s experience while engaged in
`entertainment technologies is more manageable [Mandryk and Inkpen 2004]. The most
`common approach to sensing an affective state is via sensors that measure the user’s
`changing physiological activity. Skin surface sensors like those that measure galvanic
`skin response, or activity in the cardiovascular, respiratory, and muscular systems can
`accurately measure physiological activity. But many users could perceive them as
`invasive. Although they may be less accurate than surface sensors, they can also be built
`into the environment by, for instance, embedding them in a chair [Anttonen and Surakka
`2005] or in a game controller [Sykes and Brown 2003], so that users can interact very
`naturally with their entertainment technologies. Other methods for measuring affective
`states include thermal cameras [Puri et al. 200], voice analysis, or facial expression
`analysis.
`2.2.1 Utilizing Affect in a Game Environment. Once a player’s affective state has been
`sensed, it can be used to inject “personality” into a gaming environment, resulting in an
`environment that meaningfully responds to a player’s context rather than to preconceived
`gaming challenges [Mandryk and Stanley 2004].
`A preliminary example of this approach is given in S.M.A.R.T Braingames
`[http://www.smartbraingames.com/]. Braingames uses real video games played on a
`Sony Playstation™ integrated with NASA technology. The system determines whether
`the user is in the desired brain state by using brain waves measured by an EEG, and
`adjusts accordingly. If the user maintains the desired brain state, he or she gains full
`control of the game controller. If not, the speed and steering control decrease. Basically,
`as the player maintains focus, the game responds, and when the player loses focus,
`ground is lost. This particular game was developed to train patients to achieve a desired
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 004
`
`

`

`Pervasive Games: Bringing Computer Entertainment Back to the Real World
`
`•
`
`5
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`Fig. 2. Brainball: players' EEG signals control the movement of a physical ball on a table.
`
`
`brain state, and not as a source of fun in itself. Researchers tested this game environment
`against a traditional biofeedback training environment and found no difference between
`the two systems in terms of performance, but found that both parents and children
`preferred using the video game system. The principle used in this game can also be used
`to develop games that dynamically respond to how the player is feeling in order to create
`a more engaging experience. Along these lines, Gilleade and Allanson [2003] created a
`software development kit (SDK) that, by means of monitoring the player’s physiological
`condition and integrating this information into an appropriate game environment, allows
`the interactions between man and machine to become dynamic entities during play.
`2.2.2 Physiology as Direct Input. Instead of using a player’s context to manipulate the
`game environment, one could use it as a direct and natural input to a game. For example,
`Brainball [Hjelm 2003] is a game where brain waves (from EEG) are used to alter the
`direction in which a physical ball rolls on a physical table. Players sit across from each
`other and must relax to make the ball move towards the opponent.
`AffQuake (http://affect.media.mit.edu/projects.php?id=180) alters game play in the
`popular Quake first-person shooter game via the player’s galvanic skin response, sensed
`through metal contacts on the hands or feet. In AffQuake, when a player is startled, the
`player’s avatar is also startled and jumps back. AffQuake also relates the size of the
`player’s avatar to the player’s arousal. In Relax To Win [Bersak et al. 2001], a player
`controls the speed of a racing dragon via galvanic skin response. As a player relaxes, the
`dragon moves faster. This was also the principle behind a commercially unsuccessful car
`racing game released by Human Engineered Software and promoted by Leonard Nimoy.
`These are relatively simple instantiations of using a physiological signal as an explicit
`input to a game environment. Affective gaming is a very young research area, and there
`is a lot of fertile ground to explore. When affective game techniques are combined with
`traditional input techniques or other pervasive game elements, the possibilities for an
`engaging, contextually- aware game system are endless.
`2.3 Augmented Tabletop Games
`While affective games mainly focus on using physiological state parameters to exchange
`information with virtual game elements, augmented tabletop games also integrate the
`states of players as central to the gaming experience. Augmented tabletop games do not
`serve as an input to the virtual game logic alone, but also add the richness of the social
`situation to the virtual domain. Traditional tabletop games such as Chess or Go have
`been popular for thousands of years; they are still going strong today, despite the arrival
`of attractive computer entertainment technology. Their continuing success can clearly be
`
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 005
`
`

`

`•
`
`C. Magerkurth et al.
`
`6
`
`attributed to the direct interaction and communication between the players, who sit
`together around the same table, facing each other at an intimate distance. A dense social
`situation is stimulated by close face-to-face interaction that integrates discussion,
`laughter, and all kinds of nonverbal communication hints that are integral elements of
`Poker-like tabletop games.
`While the social aspects of traditional tabletop games render them interesting enough
`in their own right, the static nature of their traditional game media limits the scope of
`realizable games. The lack of computing technology necessary for multi-sensual
`stimulation with audio and visuals or smart and proactive behaviors hinders the
`realization of many believable and immersive game concepts.
`Complementarily, many claim that the drawback to traditional computer games is the
`lack of social interaction in a face-to-face setting, which tabletop games provide. At the
`same time, computer games offer the attractions of computer technology, which tabletop
`games lack. Therefore, it is only a natural evolution to combine the benefits of computer
`and tabletop games into a novel type of augmented tabletop game that sets out to provide
`new and engaging gaming experiences.
`2.3.1 The STARS Platform. One of the more elaborated platforms in the field of
`augmented tabletop games is called STARS [Magerkurth et al. 2004]. It consists of a
`dedicated hardware setup of devices such as public vertical displays and personal digital
`assistants (PDAs) centered on a smart interactive table. The STARS hardware is based on
`so-called Roomware components ]Streitz et al. 2001], which are room elements
`unobtrusively augmented with information technology.
`The actual gaming applications are built on top of a STARS software layer that frees
`the developer from anticipating the exact set of input devices during a game session and
`provides functionality for creating user interfaces, administering players, and so on.
`The central component of each STARS game is an interactive game table (see
`Fig. 33), on which the respective game boards are displayed. Currently, the table is an
`InteracTable Roomware component [Streitz et al. 2001] with a touch-sensitive display set
`into its horizontal surface. Physical playing pieces provide a tangible interface that feels
`similar to the interface of traditional board games. The playing pieces are detected by an
`overhead camera that also determines the positions of the players by tracking their hands
`as they reach over the table’s surface. Additionally, an integrated RF-ID antenna detects
`
`
`
`Fig. 3. The STARS tabletop platform.
`
`
`
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 006
`
`

`

`Pervasive Games: Bringing Computer Entertainment Back to the Real World
`
`•
`
`7
`
`
`
`
`physical tokens placed on the table surface, which allows integration of arbitrary game
`artifacts such as wands, potions, or gems, and hence sensed by the game logic.
`We avoid computer interfaces that involve mice, keyboards, or desktop monitors to
`ensure that the user experience remains human-centered and socially supportive. Playing
`pieces remain the primary interaction devices during game-play because they provide the
`most natural interface to a board game. The displayed game boards are superior to the
`static nature of traditional physical media. These visually impressive boards change
`dynamically as the game progresses. The problem of positions and viewing angles in
`traditional tabletop games (someone on the left side of the table sees a different image
`than someone at the opposite, right side) is tackled by a sophisticated auto-rotation board
`instead of an abstract, unoriented one. From any viewing angle, playing pieces look
`mostly the same. The system can rotate any object on the game board to the angle from
`which the current player can see the best.
`So far, several games have been implemented on the STARS platform. For instance,
`the role-playing game KnightMage (see Figure 3) deals with the exploration of a
`dungeon filled with treasure, equipment, and, most important, monsters. In the game,
`players must cooperate to survive against the monsters in the dungeon, but at the same
`time compete for individual riches. The combination of competitive and cooperative play
`is also frequently found in traditional board games like Risk, which exploits the social
`richness of face-to-face gaming. Demonstrating its platform, with its dynamically
`changing large game boards, is KnightMage’s primary focus.
`2.3.2 False Prophets. False Prophets is a hybrid board-video game system designed to
`enhance player interaction [Mandryk et al. 2002]. Its development was motivated by the
`various properties of board and computer games: board games are mobile, highly
`interactive, provide a nonoriented interface, and allow for a dynamic number of players
`and house rules. They are also limited to a fairly static environment, don't allow players
`to save the game state, and have simple scoring rules. On the other hand, computer
`games provide complex simulations,
`impartial
`judging, evolving environments,
`suspension of disbelief, and the ability to save game state. But computer games often
`support interaction with the system, rather than with other players. Even in a colocated
`environment, players sit side-by-side and interact with each other through the interface.
`Consequently, the goal of developing the False Prophets hybrid game system was to
`leverage the advantages of both of these mediums, encouraging interaction between the
`players.
`In False Prophets, players use tangible pieces to move around a digital game board
`projected onto a touch-sensitive table. The playing pieces are equipped with a button for
`simple game operations, while more complex interactions and private information are
`managed through a hand-held computer. Players move their tokens around a dynamic
`game board, gathering clues from the environment and observing the characteristics of
`the other players. The physical distance between the player tokens impacts the level of
`digital information “observed” by the player. For example, from a distance, a player
`might be able to tell that his opponent is tall, while up close the player can see fine-
`grained characteristics such as tattoos and freckles. By synthesizing all of this digital
`information, the players try to determine who are their friends and who their enemies.
`This unique game environment has the computational advantages of a computer game
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 007
`
`

`

`•
`
`C. Magerkurth et al.
`
`8
`
`environment, while still supporting interpersonal interactions. In addition, it allows for
`the development of novel game elements that couldn't exist with either of the traditional
`game technologies.
`2.3.3 Smart Jigsaw Puzzle. Another interesting research prototype was presented by
`Jürgen Bohn from ETH Zürich [2004]. The smart jigsaw puzzle is a hybrid tabletop
`game that augments the physical pieces of a jigsaw puzzle with RFID tags. The
`underlying RFID reader technology is linked to a PC application that demonstrates a
`virtual representation of the jigsaw puzzle’s physical state. By using calm RFID
`technology, the smart jigsaw puzzle preserves the original qualities of the game, namely
`robustness and social compatibility. The augmented game is robust in the sense that even
`if the computer or RFID hardware should fail or be temporarily unavailable, the
`augmented puzzle can still be played in the traditional way.
`2.4 Location-Aware Games
`While augmented tabletop games utilize pervasive computing technology to enrich
`physical game boards, another popular approach in the pervasive gaming field is to
`regard the entire world, the architecture we live in, as a game board. Technically, it is
`quite feasible to identify and track the positions of passive physical playing pieces on a
`Handy game board. When an entire building, a block, or even a city becomes the game
`board and the human players themselves become the proactive and highly unpredictable
`playing pieces, a host of technical and conceptual challenges arise.
`Technically, a player’s position in a location-aware game is either determined by GPS
`satellite signals, WiFi, or GSM signal strength and/ or cell ID, or by using short range
`proximity-sensing technologies such as RFID, infrared beacons, or ultrasonic emitters.
`Some of the earliest location-aware games were implemented using short-range
`proximity sensors.
`Björk et al. [2001] provided one of the earlier examples that describe the world as a
`game board. In Pirates! players move around in the physical domain and are presented
`with location-dependent games on mobile computers they carry with them. Even though
`actual game-play takes place on ordinary PDAs, the context of the players’ location is
`nicely integrated in the overall concept of the game. Each PDA resembles a pirate ship,
`and several locations in the physical world are associated with islands the players can
`visit and experience via games on their PDAs. In contrast to recent pervasive games
`played outdoors, Pirates is an indoor game with a relatively small playing field, from
`which only a few key locations need to be identified. So positioning is simply via short-
`range radio frequency (RF) proximity sensors, which works appropriately given the
`affordances of the game.
`Due to the necessity for a corresponding infrastructure, short-range proximity sensors
`are not ideal for implementing pervasive games; thus GPS and WiFi form the basis of
`most recent location-aware games. Given the massive market penetration of mobile
`phones, GSM cell-based games will probably become more prominent in the future. The
`Swedish company It’s Alive is already offering two location-based pervasive games that
`perform positioning via GSM cell identifications at http://www.itsalive.com/.
`GPS signal reception does not work indoors, and is only moderately accurate
`outdoors; but it allows us to cover a large playing field (the entire planet). Since GPS
`does not provide arbitrary means of communication, it is usually necessary to set up an
`
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 008
`
`

`

`Pervasive Games: Bringing Computer Entertainment Back to the Real World
`
`•
`
`9
`
`
`additional communication channel using WiFi, peer-to-peer technologies such as IrDA or
`Bluetooth, or GPRS /UMTS-based data transfer.
`WiFi can be used to exchange arbitrary data between players and to locate clients,
`both indoors and outdoors by using signal-strength measurement. While data exchange
`normally works fine for a radius of a few dozen meters, even through walls and other
`obstacles, positioning using triangulation requires an appropriate infrastructure and a
`careful layout of stationary WiFi access points. Many pragmatic (not only technical)
`problems encountered in setting up a pervasive game in a building, based on WiFi
`triangulation for locating players, are described in “The Drop” (Ian Smith et. al.) in this
`issue of ACM CiE.
`Benford et al. [2005] also describe the significant issues relevant to large-scale
`pervasive games. Among them is the problem of dealing with uncertainty in sensing and
`wireless communications. Naturally, it can be very harmful to a pervasive game if
`communication between players or the virtual representation of the game fails.
`Positioning the players might work more or less reliably and accurately, up to the point
`where the inaccuracy becomes intolerable. One could either work to improve the
`technical robustness of the system to ensure an appropriate gaming experience, or, if this
`is not possible, tailor the game around the technical shortcomings and make them part of
`the actual gaming experience.
`A nice example of a game that successfully manages to deal with a limited radius of
`802.11b hotspots is called Treasure, developed by Chalmers et al. [2005].
`2.4.1 Treasure. Treasure is a pervasive multiplayer game played on an outdoor area of
`several thousand square meters. The game revolves around collecting virtual coins that
`are hidden in the game area. Players are equipped with a combination of GPS and
`802.11b hand-held computers and learn about the positions of the coins on their PDA
`displays. When they approach the corresponding physical locations of the coins, they can
`pick them up and later score for “uploading” them to a server. What makes the game
`special is the notion of seamful gaming (alluding to Mark Weiser, a pioneer in the
`pervasive computing area, and to his term, i.e., seamless interaction). A key aspect in
`pervasive computing is the seamless integration of technology into our everyday lives.
`However, since Wifi coverage in the Treasure game is not constantly available
`throughout the entire playing field, there are seams between the areas with and without
`WiFi coverage. Instead of trying to disguise the seams, they are made central components
`of the game-play. (Players hide in the shadows of the missing connectivity, and strike
`other connected players by sneaking up on them and “stealing” their coins when the
`thieves suddenly enter their WiFi connected area.)
`It is also possible to combine gaming in the real world with traditional online
`computer game-play via screens and keyboards. The artists group, Blast Theory, and the
`Mixed Reality Lab at the University of Nottingham have been working successfully on
`several titles that mix street and online players into a unique blend of traditional and
`pervasive computer gaming.
`2.4.2 Can You See Me Now? CYSMN combines pervasive gaming action in a real part of
`a city with online game-play in a virtual model of the game area. In real streets, runners
`equipped with GPS and 802.11b WiFi run around to catch the online players that move
`through the virtual representations of the streets. The real runners have their own
`positions and those of online players permanently displayed on hand-held computers, and
`
`ACM Computers in Entertainment,Vol. 3, No. 3, July 2005.
`
`Niantic's Exhibit No. 1028
`Page 009
`
`

`

`•
`
`C. Magerkurth et al.
`
`10
`
`additionally, use walkie-talkies to coordinate their movements to catch the online players.
`The online players, at their home computers, are connected to the game via the Internet,
`and listen in on the runners’ walkie-talkies via streamed audio. Thereby the online
`players get to know the conditions and experiences on the real streets, and can react
`accordingly. Text messages can be exchanged to coordinate with other online players, in
`turn the messages can be delivered to the runners in the streets, so that an exciting
`atmosphere of mutual exchange of vital information emerges.
`CYSMN is a great example of the creation of entirely new and engaging gaming
`experiences based on a tried and tested simple game idea (i.e., CYSMN is essentially a
`game of catch). Several user studies have been conducted to research the mutual effects
`of online and pervasive gaming in CYSMN [Flintham et al. 2003].
`2.4.3 Uncle Roy All Around You. URAAY is a successor to CYSMN, created by the
`same team [Benford et al. 2004]. While CYSMN managed to mix online and physical
`gamers, URAAY picks up the concept of these two domains. But it also integrates more
`aspects of the real world into the game mechanics. In particular, physical players remain
`constantly uncertain about which parts of the real environment are actual parts of the
`game. For instance, through communication with online players or the game itself,
`players in the streets receive hints such as the gender or color of other important persons
`in their vicinity, effectively integrating passers-by into the action. The story is about
`finding, somewhere in a city, a mysterious character known as Uncle Roy, with the
`physical players searching the streets. They are supported by online players who track
`their progress and aid them with hints about the way to Uncle Roy (see Figure 4 ).
`2.4.4 Catch the Flag. In an augmented twist on the popular traditional game [Xu et al.
`2003], smart phones are used as the main inte