Visual Fixations Duration as an Indicator of Skill Level in eSports

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that analyzing fixation durations in eye movements can effectively indicate skill levels in eSports players, revealing distinct fixation patterns associated with expertise.

Contribution

It introduces a novel method for assessing gaming skill through fixation duration analysis, identifying bimodal distributions and fixation types linked to expertise.

Findings

Highly skilled players show more variability in fixation durations.

Bimodal fixation duration distributions are characteristic of high skill players.

Two fixation types, ambient and focal, are identified as markers of skill level.

Abstract

Using highly interactive systems like computer games requires a lot of visual activity and eye movements. Eye movements are best characterized by visual fixation - periods of time when the eyes stay relatively still over an object. We analyzed the distributions of fixation duration of professional athletes, amateur and newbie players. We show that the analysis of fixation durations can be used to deduce the skill level in computer game players. Highly skilled gaming performance is characterized by more variability in fixation durations and by bimodal fixation duration distributions suggesting the presence of two fixation types in high skill gamers. These fixation types were identified as ambient (automatic spatial processing) and focal (conscious visual processing). The analysis of computer gamers' skill level via the analysis of fixation durations may be used in developing adaptive interfaces and in interface design.