The Impact of Emotional Virtual Characters on Emotional State and Player Experience in VR Horror Games
Linda Graf, Katharina Emmerich, Stefan Liszio, Maic Masuch · 2024
The presence of virtual characters in digital games influences players’ experiences; however, the specific impact of various emotional states exhibited by these characters remains unclear. Theories like Emotional Contagion and Emotional Similarity seek to elucidate how the emotions of others affect our own: We might let the emotional state of others infect us, or our emotions may be intensified when others exhibit similar feelings. In the gaming context, we pondered: What impact does playing a horror game alongside a confident virtual character, compared to an anxious one, have on players’ emotional states and experiences? We conducted a lab study with 69 participants and compared a VR horror game played with either a confident or anxious virtual character or alone. Horror games were chosen for their ability to evoke intense emotions, like fear. Our results show that participants could accurately recognize the emotional states portrayed by the virtual character. The horror game significantly increased fear and positive affect, according to the nature of this genre. Not in line with expectations, there was no significant difference between groups regarding player experience and emotional state. We discuss these findings and explore implications for emotional virtual characters within and beyond gaming contexts.