Acts of Survival : Exploring trust through a multiplayer analog game

Sammanfattning

Trust has been explored as an important factor in game research, expressed across various multiplayer games through game mechanics. However, less attention was paid to how these mechanics specifically affected it. This study investigates how trust can be modelled and explored in a multiplayer analog game through its mechanics with a focus on reflective game design. Using an iterative research through design approach, this study developed and evaluated a two-player analog game, “Act of Survival”, across three playtests and design iterations. The data were gathered through observations and semi-structured interviews and analysed using thematic analysis to identify patterns in players' trust-related behaviour. The findings indicate that trust is a process shaped by interactions among players in situations where dependency, uncertainty, vulnerability, risk, and the possibility of betrayal exist. The findings highlight the importance of mechanics that create dependency between players, incomplete information, the possibility of deception, and player agency to make trust-based decisions. Together, these factors allowed players to actively negotiate on how much trust they gave the other players and made it possible to reflect on trust as part of gameplay. This study contributes to the understanding of how trust can be modelled and explored in a game system through its mechanics. By showing how specific mechanics can model different dimensions of trust, the findings provide insights for designers seeking to create trust-based experiences.