Control mapping in virtual reality: effects on spatial presence and controller naturalness

This study explores how a video game player’s sense of being in a game world (i.e., spatial presence) is impacted by the use of a virtual reality head-mounted display (VR HMD). Research focused on VR (as realized with the use of HMDs) has fallen by the wayside since the early 1990s due to the limitations in the technology. With modern reimagining of VR HMDs, there is now an opportunity to reexamine the impact it has on gaming experience. This article explores the results of an experiment in which university students played video games using either a VR HMD or a standard monitor while playing a first-person shooter video game. Control interface was also manipulated between incomplete tangible mapped devices (Razer Hydra) and directionally mapped devices (mouse and keyboard). Results indicated that VR HMDs have a positive impact on a players’ level of spatial presence and feelings of controller naturalness. Controller naturalness also impacted spatial presence regardless of display condition.