Evaluating a distributed physical leisure game for three players

Abstract

Physical leisure activities such as table tennis provide healthy exercise and can offer a means to connect with others socially; however, players have to be in the same physical location to play. We have developed a networked table tennis-like game that is played with a real paddle and ball, augmented with a large-scale videoconference. Unlike existing commercial console games that encourage physical activity, our system supports social interaction through an audio and video communication channel, offers a familiar gaming interface comparable to a traditional leisure game, provides non-virtual force feedback and can be enjoyed by players in three geographically separate locations simultaneou..