Chapter 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Theories

Game theory started as a mathematical exploration of human behaviors. The term has since
expanded to cover decision-making science for not just humans, but animals and computers, too.
Originally, game theory only looked at zero-sum “games.” Zero-sum means no “points” are
added–in order for one person to “win” another played had to “lose.” Game theory is used a lot
in economics, psychology, and political science, but it has a place in biology and computer
science studies, too. As the study of game theory evolved, it moved into non-zero-sum games.
This expansion meant looking at situations where win-win solutions were possible (or, at the
very least, lose-lose situations could be avoided). Game theory studies conflict and cooperation
between agents using mathematics. These interactions are broken down into every possible
decision by every agent, and every possible outcome based on every combination of every
decision. The theory of game-based learning cannot ignore the benefit to creativity provided by
the new ways of learning. The game encourages creativity and motivation by posing challenges
and problems that students must solve using their imagination.

Educational Theories

Constructivism is the concept of “learning by doing” and this can be implemented in this digital
era through game-based learning where individual students can learn themselves how to solve
problems and make decisions through games. The interactive tasks are also customizable. A
Chinese proverb says: “Tell me, and I’ll forget. Show me, and I may remember. Involve me, and
I’ll understand.” With game-based learning tools, engaged students and workers can embrace
learning rather than view it as a disruptive burden (Rapini, Sarina 2012).
Though cognitivism, the learners became the centre of attention and acquire knowledge through
a variety of different modalities (e.g. text, pictures, sounds). These enable the player to identify
and analyse problems and apply past learning (Aristidis Protopsaltis 2011). Learning based off of
cognitivism is to “[connect] symbols in a meaningful and memorable way” and they “acquire
knowledge through a variety of different modalities (e.g. text, pictures, sounds)” that can then be
applied to “identify and analyse problems” (Aristidis Protopsaltis 2011). Klopfer et al 2009 also
mentioned “the promise of games is that we can harness the spirit of play to build new cognitive
structures and ideas of substance” (Rapini, Sarina 2012).

Related Literature

GENDER

Bryce and Rutter’s (2012) key evaluation of gender and gaming, it’s far stated that a lot of the
dialogue so far has centered across the content material of the games, rather than deeper
evaluation of gender- unique motivation to play games. Despite playing the same games as boys,
girls may do it in a different way (McFarlane et al 2016). Boys continue to use PCs primarily as
gaming platforms whereas girls typically lose interest in games as they get older and use them
for other purposes McFarlane (2016).

Males are more likely to prefer to play action, fighting, sports, and strategy games than females.
But females prefer to play puzzle games more than males do (Joiner et al., 2011) . Shaw (2012)
points out that by creating ‘girl games’, game designers increase the gender divide in the gaming
industry by further separating women game players from the more mainstream games. Rather
than creating games that appeal to a single target audience, Shaw (2012) recommends that
designers create games that incorporate diversity.
Kinzie and Joseph recommend using the creative activity mode. And to help promote interest in
educational games for boys, who are often bored by educational games that they don’t find fun,
they recommend providing opportunities for active and strategic modes. Although they provide
suggestions for creating games that appeal to a single-gender, Kinzie and Joseph’s main
recommendation is to incorporate as many activity modes as possible into an educational game
in order to appeal to as broad of a game playing audience as possible. Taylor (2008) described a
web of stereotypical and sexualized practices, from promotion of video games to portrayal of
male and female characters within the games (see also Behm-Morawitz 2014;Ivory 2009; Lynch
et al., 2016).

AGE

Adolescents and even adults are becoming hooked with online games which are becoming more
and more popular. In fact, most online games tend to get old too quickly and lost their appeal. It
is because of the ever growing number of online games being develop from time to time.
Nowadays, the popular online games that encourage the students to play are MINIMILITIA,
DOTA 2, LEAGE OF LEGENDS, SPECIAL FORCE, CRAZY KART, GRAND CHASE etc.
These online games have a big factor that affects the students in their academic performances in
school.

Online games are becoming an addiction for teenagers and even adults increasing in popularity.
In truth, most online games have a tendency to deteriorate with time and lose their appeal. It is
due to the fact that there are more and more online games being created every day. Online games
have both positive and negative effects on people, especially students and adults around 18 to
26years old and above (Sujat Ali Hamza 2012).

Another finding of Valdez, F. at. El. (2020) demonstrated that engaging in activities such as
playing online games helps students around 16 years old and above de-stress, improves their
ability to work together, and encourages them to pay attention in class. Younger gamers seemed
to prefer action games, older players more so games of skill (Scharkow et al., 2015).

Grade

The Academic Performance of the respondents is not affected even if they play online games.
Their grades are still good enough even if they spent time for playing. If the student decides not
to play, then there will be no deduction in the grades (Dennis O. Dumrique and Jennifer G.
Castillo, 2018). In addition, when students are provided with a learning environment where they
are encouraged to take risks and delve into challenging problem solving, they are more likely to
develop effective learning dispositions (Claxton, 2007). The challenge comes in aligning course
goals and assignments with the interests of individual students so that as students choose to
complete various assignments, they are also meeting the objectives of the course (Barata, Gama,
Jorge, & Goncalves, 2013).

Some people have said that playing online games has a variety of reasons to play because it can
be a stress reliever, a challenge and competition, relaxation, fun, social interaction, and even a
mental escape from the real world. For most people, online gaming is one of the best past times
that have to gain particularly in teenagers and students. According to Kuss & Griffiths (2012),
teens who play online games are just having fun. They do not just actually play because of some
sort of seriousness, but also because they just want to feel relief. During school hours, students
tend to feel stressed due to loads of school works and through playing it will relive their stress.

Both parents and teachers may notice decreased performance at school coupled with lower
grades and failing classes. Because of hours spent playing video games, video game addicts
exhibit fatigue and regularly sleep during school. They may not complete assignments or may
not turn assignments in on time. According to Kassarnig (2018), students’ academic performance
is determined by their behavioral patterns. Student-related factors such as engaging in a variety
of personal activities outside of the school affects their academic performance (Abaidoo, 2018).
These various personal activities performed by students outside of the school premises, could
include their engagement in mobile gaming activities.

Addiction

Online games are multiplayer games that can be accessed via the Internet. Online games not only
provide entertainment but also interesting challenges to be solved, so people play online games
without regard for time to achieve satisfaction. Students are also avid participants in online
games. It is not surprising that they may spend the entire day or night playing online. However,
such a passion for online games can have both positive and negative consequences for them.
According to one concerned Internet Café entrepreneur, “Internet Cafes are seducing youths to a
new form of addiction, one that may not destroy their bodies as drugs do, but is certainly twisting
their minds.” They forego allowances in order to save for online gaming bets. In fact, students
already forget their commitments at school and at home. As a result, video games have a huge
impact on their family’s lives, as well as distracting students and jeopardizing one’s job.

Online gaming addiction is similar to drug addiction. There are several reasons why assessing
online gaming addiction in children and adolescents is important. According to developmental
psychopathological findings, addictions appear to have precursors during adolescence (Griffiths,
2012). Furthermore, it is fairly common for most dependencies to emerge in early adulthood
(Griffiths, 2012). Compared to adulthood, adolescents are considered more often and more
susceptible to online game addiction (Kuss & Griffiths, 2012). Online games are designed to be
addictive, and they use cutting-edge behavioral psychology to keep you hooked. Immersive
experiences provide a high level of dopamine, and excessive exposure to this level of stimulation
can cause structural changes in your brain.

The American Psychiatric Association has accepted that internet use disorder is included as a
mental problem that needs further investigations. Addiction to online gaming can have several
negative psychosocial effects that include psychiatric disorders like anxiety disorders,
depression, somatization, dissociation, and obsessive-compulsive. Besides, it may lead to
changes in personality traits (Kuss & Griffiths, 2012).

Studies

Several studies in psychology have found out that increased time spent on the Internet can lead to
negative impact on a person’s ability to communicate appropriately face-to-face with friends,
peers, family members including parents (Anderson, 2001; Brignall & Van Valey, 2005; Neu,
2009; Pierce, 2009). Studies revealed that the human brain is easy to destruct and one of the
reasons is using technology. The education system tends to go with the flow with this constant
change in the society in order to get things relevant with the generations today.

Wack and Tantleff-Dunn (2009) also found a negative correlation, although the relationship
between GPA and academic performance in their study was not significant. Jackson et al (2008)
found that time spent playing games was a negative predictor of academic performance and that
those who played online games more often had poorer grades than those who played less.

COVID-19 was also a substantial contributing factor to gaming and mobile gaming growth.
During this period of lockdowns and restricted access to the outside world, many people used
gaming as a medium to connect with each other remotely. According to a survey by IDC, 63% of
respondents shared that they had spent more time playing mobile games during COVID-19. This
was especially true in countries hit hardest by the pandemic. The Philippines was one of these
countries, with many Filipinos turning to mobile games when the country went into lockdown.

The Philippines is renowned for having a high linguistic capability, with many Filipinos fluent in
English and their native Tagalog. This means that developers only really need to publish their
games in English. Foreign developers would also not have to localise their games for Filipino
gamers, as they are highly receptive and adaptable to titles published in English. This situation is
different in a country like Vietnam, where people generally prefer to play games in their native
language. Developers would hence need to cater to the local population – this is especially
important for foreign developers, who will have to localise their games in Vietnamese.