InterRings: Towards Understanding Design Micro-games to Fit Daily Work Routine

Prior game researchers mostly focused on designing the "macro" context which requires a decent proportion of time to engage and play, from which players may benefit. However, the demanding time and effort restrict playability during working hours. To our knowledge, there is little research exploring game design in a manner that enables momentary detachment from primary work for a mind refreshment and effortlessly resumes the suspended work after playing. In this paper, we propose a novel micro-game concept that enables the gamification of micro-breaks within working hours. To examine our concept, we adapted a conventional water-ring game into an interactive prototype, InterRings, which empowers users to play with handy objects. Our mixed observational studies and interviews revealed high acceptability and feasibility of the micro-game concept. Conclusively, three design guidelines are summarised for future development of micro-games.