Usability of the EMERGO player environment for scenario-based serious games

The EMERGO online platform enables the development and delivery of scenario-based serious games that foster students in acquiring professional competence. One of the main goals of the platform was to provide a user-friendly player environment that enables students to learn complex cognitive skills in authentic professional settings. We present the results of a combined quantitative and qualitative study of the usability of the platform´s player environment. We used questionnaires, made notes and group discussions with 167 students who played two games about ICT management. The analysis shows that the usability of the player environment is adequate, which is lower than found in previous more superficial studies of the environment. Its operability is mostly valued, but its understandability and user interface aesthetics are somewhat problematic, probably because students got inadequate instruction beforehand and expected a more realistic video game interface.