Investigating the Prominence and Severity of Bugs and Glitches Within Games and Their Effects on Player Experience

Abstract

Different errors that occur in video games are often referred to as glitches or bugs. The goal of this exploratory research is to understand how these glitches and bugs within video games affect a players experience. To do this, I reviewed relevant literature and performed observations of these different errors in different games via Twitch livestreams. I then performed thematic analysis with the observation data and generated themes that tie back into to the relevant literature. Most of the current literature focuses on the what and how behind bugs in games, but very little on the implications of these bugs on the overall experience for the players, and what patterns of behavior may emerge because of them.