A systems development methodology for developing location based games

Abstract

Rapid expansion and development in the modern mobile technology market has created an opportunity for the use of location-based technologies in games. Because of this fast expanding market and new technology, it is important to be aware of the implications this expansive technology could have for computer security. Furthermore, this has also led to a lack of systems development methodologies (SDM) suitable for the development of locationbased games. In this study an attempt will first be made to measure the impact of location-based technologies and games on the security awareness of first- to fourth-year computer science university students. A questionnaire, posted on the web, and completed by computer science students from different year groups, was used to collect the data. The major results are the following: there is a difference in the security awareness of computer science students who use and play location-based services, technologies and games and those who do not. It was also determined that the computer science students are cautiously aware of security implications although they do not take preventative measures. Secondly, a framework that can be used to evaluate the suitability of SDMs for the development of location-based games will also be introduced in this study. A list of aspects that need to be addressed in the development process for location-based games was identified. One of the aspects is security and privacy. By incorporating this aspect into the development process of location-based games, an emphasis on secure development is addressed based on the security awareness results. The identified aspects were incorporated in a survey to rank their importance with regard to the development of locationbased games. SDMs most often used for developing mobile applications and mobile and traditional games were identified and evaluated using the framework developed in this study. The results of the evaluation indicated that none of the chosen SDMs is perfectly suited for the development of location-based games. Lastly, a newly developed SDM to aid in the development process of location-based games, called the Developmental Methodology for Location-Based Games (DMLBG) will be introduced. The DMLBG was developed based on the results obtained from the framework. Four different indie game development groups were asked to test the DMLBG. During this test, the four indie games developer groups used the DMLBG extensively while developing a location-based game to test the feasibility of the SDM. The results showed that the SDM did aid all four of the teams to develop a successful location-based game. The teams documented the development process and gave critical feedback on their experiences. This feedback was used to revise and improve the SDM. The DMLBG addressed the lack of an SDM that is suitable for the development of location-based games