Heuristic Evaluation for Serious Games (HESG): Using HESG for Designing and Evaluating Serious Games

Abstract

Heuristic evaluation has become an extensively acknowledged method of usability evaluation in software development. Serious games became an useful method in teaching because they can provide meaningful learning activities and challenges. It makes us considerer serious games as important research area. Available evaluation methods for games are falling short in evaluation process of serious games due to lacking comprehension and not covering the seriousness therefore, we took the challenge of proposing a brand new heuristic method for the evaluation of serious games - Heuristic Evaluation for Serious Games (HESG). HESG consists of three modules, Game Play, Entertainment and Usability and Game Mechanics. Each module can be used remotely, autonomously and allows certain variations depending on the needs of designers and evaluators. The purpose of HESG is to create a complete and easily applicable instrument for evaluating different types of serious games. The main objective is to provide researchers and game developers with complete method to evaluate serious games and specialized training simulators in order to assure that used games are meeting the objectives, standards of quality and improve learning and training process. HESG has proven to be a comprehensive easily applicable method, a good tool to evaluate the special training purposes and may significantly help the professionals to develop good usability serious games.

Keywords: Heuristic Evaluation, Serious Games, Simulators, Usability Evaluation, Design Guidelines, Video Games, Computer Games, HCI, Heuristic Evaluation For Serious Games (HESG)

DOI: 10.54941/ahfe100779