Bramley Stephanie, Gainsbury Sally M
Department of Music, The University of Sheffield, Jessop Building, 34 Leavygreave Road, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, S3 7RD, England, UK.
Centre for Gambling Education and Research, Southern Cross University, P.O. Box 157, Lismore, NSW, 2480, Australia.
J Gambl Stud. 2015 Dec;31(4):1735-51. doi: 10.1007/s10899-014-9506-x.
Over the last few years playing social casino games has become a popular entertainment activity. Social casino games are offered via social media platforms and mobile apps and resemble gambling activities. However, social casino games are not classified as gambling as they can be played for free, outcomes may not be determined by chance, and players receive no monetary payouts. Social casino games appear to be somewhat similar to online gambling activities in terms of their visual and auditory features, but to date little research has investigated the cross over between these games. This study examines the auditory features of slot-themed social casino games and online slot machine games using a case study design. An example of each game type was played on three separate occasions during which, the auditory features (i.e., music, speech, sound effects, and the absence of sound) within the games were logged. The online slot-themed game was played in demo mode. This is the first study to provide a qualitative account of the role of auditory features within a slot-themed social casino game and an online slot machine game. Our results found many similarities between how sound is utilised within the two games. Therefore the sounds within these games may serve functions including: setting the scene for gaming, creating an image, demarcating space, interacting with visual features, prompting players to act, communicating achievements to players, providing reinforcement, heightening player emotions and the gaming experience. As a result this may reduce the ability of players to make a clear distinction between these two activities, which may facilitate migration between games.
在过去几年里，玩社交赌场游戏已成为一种流行的娱乐活动。社交赌场游戏通过社交媒体平台和移动应用程序提供，类似于赌博活动。然而，社交赌场游戏不被归类为赌博，因为它们可以免费玩，结果可能不由机会决定，并且玩家不会获得金钱赔付。社交赌场游戏在视觉和听觉特征方面似乎与在线赌博活动有些相似，但迄今为止，很少有研究调查这些游戏之间的交叉情况。本研究采用案例研究设计，考察了老虎机主题社交赌场游戏和在线老虎机游戏的听觉特征。每种游戏类型的一个示例在三个不同场合进行游玩，在此期间，记录游戏中的听觉特征（即音乐、语音、音效和无声情况）。在线老虎机主题游戏以演示模式进行游玩。这是第一项对老虎机主题社交赌场游戏和在线老虎机游戏中听觉特征的作用进行定性描述的研究。我们的结果发现，这两种游戏在声音的运用方式上有许多相似之处。因此，这些游戏中的声音可能具有以下功能：为游戏设定场景、塑造形象、划分空间、与视觉特征互动、促使玩家行动、向玩家传达成就、提供强化、增强玩家情绪和游戏体验。结果，这可能会降低玩家对这两种活动进行明确区分的能力，这可能会促进玩家在不同游戏之间的转换。
