Newsgames: Gameplay and Usability in Simulation Games

Newsgames are a game format that use the news as a basis for constructing their narrative. Observations made between 2012 and 2014 indicated a gap in the observation of gameplay and usability of this kind of game, which has arisen as a different format of publishing information. The objective of this study was to analyze the usability and playability of newsgames produced since 2000, for which three simulation newsgames were chosen: Iced - I can end deportation, Heartsaver and The Candidate. The analysis was based on studies by Niesen and Preece and Rogers, who observed users interacting with newgames. From the results obtained we intend to investigate other genres of newsgames, with a view to improving the game experience.