Can Hypercasual VR Games (HVRGs) Improve Experience and Performance of Adult Learners? Exploring Progressive Versus Dynamic Difficulty

Game-based learning (GBL) in a virtual reality (VR) environment provides individuals with access to high-quality learning resources that may be expensive or unavailable in real-world scenarios. For example, individuals can easily participate in target shooting through this medium, which was a popular sport during Colonial America. This article explores the potential of using GBL to enhance shooting skills through a hypercasual VR game (HVRG). The study examines the impact of progressive versus dynamic game difficulty (PGD vs. DGD) strategies on experience and performance of learners. Various factors related to both experience metrics were recorded, including playfulness (engagement, enjoyment, and anxiety) and playability (adaptability and motivation). A game score was recorded to evaluate performance. The presented research (n = 50) implicates these quantitative findings to the qualitative feedback collected from the participants during the postgameplay interview session. An analysis of the research findings concluded that participants performed significantly better during rule-based AI-enabled DGD compared with PGD.