Flow Channel

Flow channel is method of determining the engagement of the player. This is where the challenge of the game and the skills of the player is in union together. so the player would feel anxious if the challenge is too high compared the skills of the player. Whereas the skills of the player is too high and the challenge is too low which results for boredom of the player. This diagram below a straight line between to skills and the challenge diagonal line to right. This may change from game to game like the flow channel for a game with the target audience for young children age 3 to 5. The line will be more horizontal with low level challenges and skills. Where games for Venetians of video games would want more of a challenge so the line will go into the anxiety triangle. 

(sala.2011)

The aim of a game design is to make sure the player is in a state of flow. For a state of flow you need:Clear goals,No distractions, Direct feedback, and Continuously challenging. "challenge that lies between boredom and frustration, for both of these unpleasant extremes cause our mind to change its focus to a new activity" (Schell,j. 2008) 

The one who came up with and researched flow was psychologist MihalyCsikszentmihalyi. Who even wrote a book called: 'Flow'.The book discussed "Positive aspects of human experience - joy, creativity, a process of total self involvement with life I call flow" (Csikszentmihalyi, M.2002). The effect of cognitive flow is a: "Extreme focus on a task. A sense of active control. Merging of action and awareness. Loss of self-awareness. Distortion of the experience of time." (Baron.2012).  

So when a game has goals, feedback, and challenge and the  Challenge matches the skills of the player then flow should be achieved. When in flow the player should experience a loss of self awareness and distortion of time. When this happens the player should have a sense of complete focus, joy and self involvement with the game. 




Bibliography 

Baron, S. (2012). Cognitive Flow: The Psychology of Great Game Design. [online] Gamasutra.com. Available at: http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/166972/cognitive_flow_the_psychology_of_.php [Accessed 16 Mar. 2016].

Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2002). Flow. London: Rider.

Sala, Toni. "Game Theory Applied: The Flow Channel". Indie Dev Stories. N.p., 2011. Web. 21 Jan. 2016.

Schell, J. (2008). The art of game design. Amsterdam: Elsevier/Morgan Kaufmann, p.121.