Investigating Game Player's Flow Experiences: The Case of First Time Guitar Hero Players

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the perception of first time guitar hero players about their flow states while playing the game. For this reason, a study with two stages was conducted. In the first stage there were ten participants and interviews were conducted with them. In order to prevent novelty effect, the second stage of the study was done with the ones who indicated that they experienced flow in the first phase. The number of the participants for the second phase was seven. The study results revealed that majority of the participants experienced flow while playing guitar hero. The elements that were investigated and confirmed in the study were, challenge and skill, a clear set of goals, focused attention, the transformation of time, telepresence and self-consciousness.