Heuristic Evaluation of a MMORPG: Guild Wars 2

Abstract

Usability of computer games is essential for the competitive game development market. Heuristic evaluation is one of the frequently used methods for this purpose. In this study, heuristic evaluation of Guild Wars 2 was conducted. Heuristics that were specifically developed for computer games from the literature were extracted for the evaluation under five categories. These were ease of playability and learnability, decent visual design and adequate interaction with the player, adequate satisfaction level of game content, game play and game mechanics, adequate fictionalized and supportive game narrative and adequate communication components and socializing opportunities. Six evaluators evaluated the game based on the given heuristics. The participants reported some usability issues which should be resolved. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014.