Spatial Audio Cues in an Immersive Virtual Reality STEM Escape Room Game: A Comparative Study
: Vontzalidis, Georgios; Mystakidis, Stylianos; Christopoulos, Athanasios; Moustakas, Konstantinos
: Krüger, Jule M.; Pedrosa, Daniela; Beck, Dennis; Bourguet, Marie-Luce; Dengel, Andreas; Ghannam, Rami; Miller, Alan; Peña-Rios, Anasol; Richter, Jonathon
: International Conference on Immersive Learning
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland
: CHAM
: 2025
: Communications in Computer and Information Science
: Immersive Learning Research Network: 10th International Conference on Immersive Learning, iLRN 2024, Glasgow, UK, June 10–13, 2024, Revised Selected Papers, Part I
: COMM COM INF SC
: Communications in Computer and Information Science
: 2271
: 317
: 328
: 12
: 978-3-031-80474-8
: 978-3-031-80475-5
: 1865-0929
: 1865-0937
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80475-5_23
: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-80475-5_23
Spatial audio is an integral aspect of virtual reality (VR) experiences as it enhances sensory immersion. Serious games often face the problem of effective player guidance and progress without disrupting gameplay. This study presents the results of a mixed-methods comparative experimental study. A system with audio cues was tested (n = 30) in a serious escape room game on a STEM subject in immersive VR. The breakout room game explored the physics of audio and sound. The introduction of audio cues improved object location and enhanced spatial auditory awareness, yet these benefits did not consistently extend to other aspects of the VR experience.
