Learning and Video Games

Video games like Tears of the Kingdom present challenges related to cognitive load. Many Zelda games rely on increasingly high element interactivity as the game progresses; initial challenges can be solved using one ability, but further into the game multiple abilities might be required to solve the puzzle or defeat an enemy. This means the intrinsic cognitive load of the game increases the more someone plays it. Fortunately, intrinsic cognitive load also relies on prior knowledge (de Jong, 2009), of which Rob has a great deal of from prior games, especially Breath of the Wild. Intrinsic cognitive load is fixed, and can’t be interfered with by external influence, like game design (Sweller, 2010) which means this is not necessarily an area where suggestions for improvement come to mind.

 

Extraneous cognitive load is load imposed unnecessarily by the material and could have been avoided by changes to design. One identified source of extraneous cognitive load occurs when someone has to solve a problem they have no schema-based knowledge of (de Jong, 2009). This is a common cognitive load in video games, especially in the early stages of the game where players first encounter new abilities they haven’t used before. Extraneous cognitive load is high in the tutorial section but can be alleviated with the way it is structured and how the game prompts players to interact with it. 

 

Furthermore, the distinction between intrinsic and extraneous cognitive loads differ based on the content. If for example, the goal is to learn how to use one ability in Tears of the Kingdom, excessive side quests or details unrelated to the task would impose extraneous cognitive load; however, if the goal is to fill up your quest log with as many objectives as possible, those details become intrinsic load (Sweller, 2010).

 

To create the schemas that might alleviate some of the extraneous cognitive load “involves processes such as interpreting, exemplifying, classifying, inferring, differentiating, and organizing;” these processes impose germane cognitive load (de Jong, 2009). Germane cognitive load differs from extraneous and intrinsic cognitive load because it does not constitute an independent source; rather, it refers to the cognitive resources available to engage with intrinsic load (Sweller, 2010). In Tears of the Kingdom, a great strategy–one that Rob himself uses–is to differentiate and categorize types of puzzles that have similar solutions based on their appearances. This allows him to use prior knowledge to approach each problem and puzzle with a potential solution. The game even appears to rely on players doing so; they use consistent material shapes and design to encourage this kind of classification.

 

With a game as open world and self-driven as Tears of the Kingdom, attention and focus are key. It is difficult to separate cognition from the mechanisms used to allocate cognitive resources which means attention needs to be a consideration, especially in technological based spaces. Attention is limited and can be disrupted. Sudden sensory stimuli, like shouts or changes in music, trigger automatic responses that can shift attention. Attention can also create inattentional blindness in which someone focuses their attention so strongly on one thing that they can’t see what is right next to it (Miller, 2014). This was a common theme in my observation of Rob. His focus was shifted several times because of visual or auditory stimuli that were related to things outside of his current task. He had to remind himself out loud to stay on task. Outside of the observation recorded here, there have been several other evenings where he will play this game while I do homework and by the end of the night he alludes to the fact that he accomplished nothing that he set out to do–yet somehow accomplished something else entirely. 

 

Emotions can also be tied to Rob’s experience with this game. Emotional responses in technologically enhanced spaces can provoke positive and negative opinions. Freedom of choice, or the ability to choose your own time, space, and pace of learning has been shown to increase positive emotional responses. Activation, or the triggers that stimulate one to move forward or critically think or engage in interactive activities can be essential to maintain interest (Wiklund-Engblom, 2005). Rob enjoys puzzles and this game is full of them. In our formal interviews and in conversations with him in the day to day, he expresses this preference strongly. He has also expressed that being able to control how and when he approached a problem in Breath of the Wild was exciting.

 

However, these can also be detriments. Frustration can be triggered by some of the previously mentioned experiences as well. A lack of instructions and too much open ended content can become a negative stimulus. Too much activation can become overwhelming and not enough activation can cause a lack of interest (Wiklund-Engblom, 2005). These are also experiences that Rob mentioned in the interview and things that I have observed in the tens of hours that he has played this game. He described feeling overwhelmed with options and not having enough information to move forward. 

 

Much of Rob’s experience in the game relies on self-regulated learning. His frustrations with being overwhelmed with so much information and a vast amount of choices is a testament to the game’s design being reliant on self-regulated learners, or learners “who are active and responsible for their own learning process and are able to be self-aware, knowledgeable and to decide an approach to learning” (Yang et al., 2018). With the onus on the player to establish goals for each game session, there are limitless possible play throughs and play styles in Tears of the Kingdom, something that creates a bit of an overwhelming feeling for Rob but might not in other players. 

 

Even still, the fact that Rob can identify goals for himself and has a general understanding of the kinds of objectives he should address is a result of the intersection of self-regulated learning and prior knowledge. If someone has high amounts of prior knowledge on a task, they are better equipped and able to develop and perform learning strategies in self-regulated learning contexts (Yang et al. 2018), like Tears of the Kingdom. Since Rob himself was the one who suggested a goal for this case study’s observation, a goal that was quite specific in nature, he relied on prior knowledge before even attempting to complete the task of navigating “The Lost Woods” to find “Korok Forest.”

 

Rob’s prior knowledge of Zelda games is vast. He explained the structures of many temples and general themes the occur throughout the series in our interview. Even still, his description of feeling overwhelmed even though ahead of the game he described a feeling of confidence aligns with current understanding. Bias can be noted in many learners regarding their predictions of how their prior knowledge might affect their results; some might approach problems in an overconfident manner and some are at risk of predicting their results incorrectly (Zimmerman, 2008). I don’t think I would necessarily call Rob overconfident in this instance–especially because I also thought his prior knowledge might play a strong role; however, he certainly has struggled more than he expected. 

 

Most of these issues–extraneous cognitive load, issues with attention, and self-regulated learning–can all be impacted by the structure and layout of the game itself. Layout and content-based factors in learning can positively or negatively influence someone’s perspective of the experience. Interest can be increased in an experience with the aesthetic appearance of a product, like the wondrous landscapes and creature designs in Tears of the Kingdom, but when the appearance of the experience is displeasing or negatively impacts the usage of knowledge or tools, interest in the topic and experience go down (Wiklund-Engblom, 2005).

At the beginning of this case study, I was concerned that I wouldn’t have enough to write about. Instead I find myself experiencing the exact opposite: I could write so much more! To answer the specific questions from my video: self-regulated learning and motivation in Tears of the Kingdom appear to be completely intrinsic and reliant on the player themselves, and video games like Tears of the Kingdom use examples, patterns, dialogue, and visuals to teach players to make their own inferences and strategies.