ergonomic applications to video game development

7/29/2019 Ergonomic Applications to Video Game Development

1/5

Alex Gregorie

ITGM 241 MW

1/30/2013

The human body is an amazing machine. Since the first primitive man stood upright and

proclaimed his dominance over the Earth this fact has been apparent. What have aided the human-

machine are the tools that man has created. In fact, it is the use of tools that sets the divide for when

man became more than just a remarkably intelligent ape and is set forth as Homo Hablis, the first man.

As man has come up through the ages he has created tools to aid him in his work and to increase his

productivity. As he sought to improve his comfort and efficiency through leather wrapped handles, or

any number of other implementations, he stumbled upon the first ergonomics.

The term ergonomics, according to the website of the Japanese Ergonomics Society, is credited

to the polish scholar Wojciech Jastrzbowski. The word ergonomics is a combination of two Greek

words, ergo and nomos. Ergo is the word for work or labor and nomos is the word for natural laws

therefore ergonomics are the ways to work according to the natural laws. Ergonomics is a way of

optimizing the design of an object so that it conforms and accents the way the body naturally functions

with the purpose of decreasing fatigue and increasing efficiency. As the study of ergonomics has become

more and more defined and studied it has found its way into the input devices of video games and

computer peripherals. While many gamers do not think of the design of their controllers, keyboards and

computer mice in terms of ergonomics it is most assuredly a defining principle of design that permeates

every level of gaming hardware from the tip of the Dualshock 2s joystick to the bottom of the most elite

gaming chair.

As discussed ergonomics is the study of decreasing fatigue and increasing efficiency. This is done

through knowledge of how the human body functions. This knowledge allows designers to create

devices according to the way the body naturally wants to operate and this in turn decreases injuries and

increases the effectiveness of the device. What principles are essential to the design of game input

devices though? On his website, Dan MacLeod, an independent ergonomics consultant, discusses ten of


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Alex Gregorie

ITGM 241 MW

1/30/2013

the basic principles of ergonomics and their applications. Two of these principles that have made

prevalent contributions to video game hardware design are the concepts of neutral positions and the

reduction of static load.

The first of these principles is that the body is less fatigued in neutral positions. Neutral

positions are the positions that the body naturally lies in. An example of one to these neutral positions

that appears in gaming is how an object relates to the hand. If studied on an open hand, the center of

the palm is not truly perpendicular to the forearm instead it forms an arc that wraps around the muscles

of the thumb. Therefore, for any item to naturally fit into the hand and keep the wrist neutral it must

utilize and account for this angle. Game controllers are no exception.

The second principle that has influenced the design of video game hardware is the idea of static

load. Static load, according to MacLeod, is the stress of holding and object in the same position for an

extended period of time. If a player is expected to interface with a system for any amount of time the

input devices must be designed with this idea of static load taken into account.

These two principles of ergonomic design, neutrality and static load, both serve the purpose

of increasing the comfort of the user as well as the efficiency with which they can use the devices.

The question then arises as to why these principles are important in the development of game

hardware devices specifically. The first reason ergonomics matter to gaming specifically is that it

minimizes physical fatigue to the body. It may seem strange to have a discussion of physical fatigue

and how it relates games especially due to the fact that society at large sees games as a sedentary

and low impact activity. In gaming however actions can be repetitive, quick and forceful. The fatigue

that is placed on the body by poor ergonomics can cause what are called, Repetitive Strain Injuries

according to an article by Christian Nordqvist published on Medical News Today. These injuries are

caused not by a sudden tearing or popping as with more common injuries but through the strain


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Alex Gregorie

ITGM 241 MW

1/30/2013

caused by repetitive motions over time which act in much the same way as erosion slowly tearing

down the body. This is very important in gaming where at a professional level players repeat motions

rapidly and quickly. In Korea where games like Starcraft elevate gamers to a similar status to that of

rockstars players can perform upwards of 300-400 actions per minute over the course of matches

that can last for anywhere between thirty minutes and an hour. These repetitive actions build up the

static load on the hands and without proper ergonomics cause injuries that can spell out the end of a

season or even a career for a professional gamer.

The second reason that ergonomics matter is that without ergonomics being integrated into

the input devices of games the growth of the industry would have been stunted. If one takes a look

at the evolution of games and the controllers they developed on there is a pattern that develops. For

example, the original Super Mario Bros was released for the Nintendo Entertainment system in 1985

and according to howlongtobeat.com, a website that lists average completion times for games, the

game could be beaten in only an hour or an hour and a half. The controller of the NES was not

ergonomic in the least with its rectangular shape and hard buttons, because static load was less of

an issue because the games even when played to completion were short. If you fast forward just ten

years though it can be seen that Super Mario 64 for the Nintendo 64 took nearly twenty hours to

complete and the controller also responded to this increase in game size by replacing the hard

directional pad with a more ergonomic joystick and revolutionizing the shape of the controller by

using the natural contours of the hand to make it a more comfortable controller and decreasing the

static load on the hand meaning that players could play longer and consume more content. This

length of gameplay would not have been nearly as enjoyable without the integration of ergonomic

principles.

Lastly ergonomics have shaped gaming by allowing players to enhance their already keen

abilities further. This necessary integration was brought on through the advent of more competitive

games. As players began to have their skills tested and sought to test the skills of their peers they


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Alex Gregorie

ITGM 241 MW

1/30/2013

naturally sought advantages. In many of the fast paced multiplayer games users had only split

seconds to enact their plans and execute commands. Ergonomics has enhanced these qualities by

streamlining the efficiencies of game input devices. Entire companies now specialize or have

specialized departments just for gaming peripherals. One of the largest of these companies,

Logitech, reported a profit of $532 million dollars in the 2012 fiscal year. Other companies such as

Razer have developed entire lines of products with the sole purpose being to increase the abilities of

professional players through ergonomic design and integration. The ergonomic evolution of the

mouse shows this off very well. When the original computer mouse was first invented in 1964 by

Douglas Engelbart it was, nothing more than , according to The Centre of Computing History, a

wooden shell, circuit board and two metal wheels that came into contact with the surface it was

being used on. As user interfaces and computers began to advance users needed more and more

precision from their devices developing the Ball mouse and then the optic mouse that is now the

standard. Now gaming peripherals have become synonymous with precision and efficiency. By

knowing and utilizing ergonomics in their products companies, like Razer and Logitech, have

integrated buttons with adjustable speed, customizable layouts and additional buttons that naturally

lie in the neutral position of the hand and in so doing have been able to boost the performance of

their clientele and advance input technology to places that were thought unreachable even just a few

years ago.

From the beginning of tool making and ergonomics man has sought his own comfort and

productivity. In recent years the study of ergonomics has changed the way we approach problems of

efficiency and comfort. Especially in games it is easy to see the benefits that ergonomic integration has

had on our health, our industry and our natural abilities allowing us to surpass the abilities that we

viewed as pinnacle in much the same way that our ancient ancestors stepped forward to carve a new

path in history with tools that bolster the greatest machines on Earth. Ourselves.


5/5

Alex Gregorie

ITGM 241 MW

1/30/2013

Works Cited

"10 Principles of Ergonomics." 10 Principles of Ergonomics. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2013.

"The History of the Computer Mouse - Computing History." The History of the Computer Mouse

- Computing History. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

"HLTB - How Long Is Super Mario 64?" HLTB - How Long Is Super Mario 64?

Howlongtobeat.com, 2012. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

"HLTB - How Long Is Super Mario Bros.?" HLTB - How Long Is Super Mario Bros.?

Howlongtobeat.com, 2012. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

"Japan Ergonomics Society." History of Ergonomics. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2013.

Logitech. Logitech - Logitech Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year Financial Results for FY

2012. Logitech - Logitech Announces Fourth Quarter and Full-Year Financial Results for

FY 2012. Logitech, 25 Apr. 2012. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.

Nordqvist, Christian. "What Is Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI)? What Causes Repetitive Strain

Injury?" Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 19 Jan. 2010. Web. 30 Jan.

2013.

ergonomic applications to video game development

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