Gaming Under Stress: Sensor-Monitored Physiological Responses to a Horror Gameplay

Most of society sees computer games as a form of entertainment and recreation. During the years, communities have emerged who watch games as a sport, or even participate in competitions as athletes. Such competitions can cause a lot of stress. An important question is whether can a computer game cause detectable changes in certain physiological values in humans. To answer this question, a game in horror genre was implemented with integrated sensors to measure players’ physiological reactions. This paper presents the motivations behind the game design, the psychological theories applied, and the innovative methods used in its development.