Are we together now? Shared agency in multi-user games

Educators have called for digitals games that large groups of 20-30 students can play together in classrooms, university seminars and professional training courses. Using shareable technologies, such as tablets and interactive tabletops, it is possible for games to engage large groups in face-to-face collaboration and discussion. But how can game user experience be evaluated in real-world, co-located learning, where engagement is mainly driven by social phenomena, such as peer teaching and discussion? In this extended abstract we argue that large-group, faceto-face gaming calls for a view on game user experience that takes the group, rather than the individual, as the unit of analysis. We indicate some methodological issues based on our own experience with designing simulation games for large co-located groups. Our aim is to invite a discussion of how the concept of shared agency can inform methodological approaches to evaluation. Author