Hexagon Music: Intrinsic Motivation Toward Creative and Challenging Play in Music-Making Games

Abstract

As music and human-computer interaction continue to intersect through music videogames, novel games explore how players can interact with music composition in a gamified context. Existing research on music-making games is largely theoretical and missing practical experimentation with players, and few studies examine how these games’ design directly affect the intrinsic motivation of players. This research explored how different systems of rewards and progression manifest in music-making games, and how those systems affect players’ intrinsic motivation, through the lens of Cognitive Evaluation Theory. The research followed the methodological perspective of Research through Design. An original music-making game prototype was designed (Hexagon Music) through three (n=3) cyclical design iterations. Semi-structured expert interviews (n=4) were employed to verify the designs, and playtests and qualitative semi-structured interviews (n=11) were conducted with players within each cycle. Mixed thematic analysis of player interviews revealed that players’ motivational basic needs are expressed separately toward structural, competitive play versus free, creative play. Task-contingent progression systems offered players a high degree of creative autonomy, but little competence feedback for their actions. Performance-contingent systems were strongly competence-supportive in solving structural problems, but often restricted creative autonomy. Existing quantitative measurement tools for games built around Self-Determination Theory lack this distinction between types of play, thus may not be adequate for studying games with both creative and competitive elements.