An Investigation into Locomotion Techniques for Use in Virtual Reality Games

Moore, Cameron Alexander

An Investigation into Locomotion Techniques for Use in Virtual Reality Games

dc.contributor.author	Moore, Cameron Alexander	en
dc.contributor.committeechair	Santos Lages, Wallace	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	Bowman, Douglas A.	en
dc.contributor.committeemember	Gracanin, Denis	en
dc.contributor.department	Computer Science and Applications	en
dc.date.accessioned	2023-01-27T09:00:16Z	en
dc.date.available	2023-01-27T09:00:16Z	en
dc.date.issued	2023-01-26	en
dc.description.abstract	The Virtual Reality (VR) industry has experienced growth in recent years with companies such as HTC, Meta, and Valve releasing more consumer-grade headsets. While certain companies such as Meta are pushing for more productivity focused applications of VR, VR remains a primary target for games. Locomotion is still a fundamental problem in games and other applications. Over the years, many researchers have examined application-agnostic and domain-specific techniques. However, few studies have been conducted on techniques specific for the environments and challenges found in first-person games. This thesis contributes with the design and evaluation of new locomotion techniques for VR games. We conducted a user study with 27 participants to evaluate one novel techniques (Repeated Short-Ranged Teleports (RSRT)), a node-based technique (Continuous Movement Pads (CMP)), and a grabbing metaphor (World Grab) with popular techniques (Smooth Locomotion, Teleport). Most preferred by participants, we found that CMP could be a suitable alternative for games compared to Smooth Locomotion and Teleport based on performance data such as time, damage taken, overall usability from System Usability Scale Questionnaires, and overall workload measured from the NASA Task-Load Index Questionnaire. We also found that RSRT and World Grab were least preferred overall and performed measurably worse in terms of time, number of falls in a section designed to measure precision and accuracy, usability, and overall workload.	en
dc.description.abstractgeneral	The Virtual Reality (VR) industry has experienced growth in recent years with companies such as HTC, Meta, and Valve releasing more consumer-grade headsets. While certain companies such as Meta are pushing for more productivity focused applications of VR, VR remains a primary target for games. Locomotion or movement within VR is a problem that does not just have one answer. There are many ways to move around in VR, with many researchers having examined the topic. This thesis explores the different methods of VR locomotion and provides information about a user study conducted regarding several novel techniques. We conducted a user study with 27 participants to evaluate one novel techniques (Repeated Short-Ranged Teleports), a node-based technique (Continuous Movement Pads), and a method (World Grab) based on a metaphor for moving in VR with more traditional techniques (Smooth Locomotion, Teleport). Based on the results of the study, we found that Continuous Movement Pads could be a suitable alternative for games compared to Smooth Locomotion and Teleport based on performance data and qualitative analysis of participants' preferences. However, we also found that Repeated Short-Ranged Teleports and World Grab were least preferred overall.	en
dc.description.degree	Master of Science	en
dc.format.medium	ETD	en
dc.identifier.other	vt_gsexam:36357	en
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10919/113532	en
dc.language.iso	en	en
dc.publisher	Virginia Tech	en
dc.rights	Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International	en
dc.rights.uri	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/	en
dc.subject	Virtual Reality	en
dc.subject	Games	en
dc.subject	Locomotion	en
dc.subject	Movement	en
dc.subject	Human-Computer Interaction	en
dc.title	An Investigation into Locomotion Techniques for Use in Virtual Reality Games	en
dc.type	Thesis	en
thesis.degree.discipline	Computer Science and Applications	en
thesis.degree.grantor	Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University	en
thesis.degree.level	masters	en
thesis.degree.name	Master of Science	en