Effects of Delay and Delay Visualization on Pong Players

Networked games are susceptible to delays which degrade the playing experience. A version of Pong was developed to test how delay and delay visualization affect gamers’ mental effort, enjoyment and task performance. A predictor display shadowing the paddle was contrasted experimentally to no visualization at two levels of delay. The experiment showed that higher levels of delay increase the mental effort, make it less fun and harder to play. Visualizing the delay with a predictor display helps players adapt their mental effort to the actual delay. Game developers expecting significant delays should consider delay visualization in the game design. Author