Sony EyeToy^TM: Developing Mental Models for 3-D Interaction in a 2-D Gaming Environment

Abstract

The Sony EyeToy^TM is a webcam attachment for the Playstation2 (PS2) gaming console. The EyeToy^TM places a user’s mirror image on a television screen while it detects their movements in order for them to manipulate objects and characters within a game. Although EyeToy^TM is immediately popular due to the novelty of interaction, users often have trouble forming a mental model of how to manipulate their own image in a 2-dimensional (2-D) 3rd person gaming scenario. Multiplayer testing sessions were carried out to explore the impact that a game’s theme and a user’s age and previous gaming experience would have on how users initially cope with this form of gaming interaction. A lack of tangible feedback and unrealistic game scenarios were the main hindrances to users reconciling the fact that they were in a 3-dimensional (3-D) space but had to behave as 2-D characters.