Exergaming in VR: The Impact of Immersive Embodiment on Motivation, Performance, and Perceived Exertion

Digital games which are controlled by physical movements - so-called exergames - have beneficial effects on the player's motivation to exercise. Since VR exergames can facilitate the potential impact on the player's motivation, we investigate the role of immersion and related constructs for a room-scale VR exergame. Thus, we developed four different versions of a digital exergame by manipulating the immersion (room-scale VR vs. common screen), perspective (first vs. third person) and tracking fidelity (HTC Vive Tracker vs. Microsoft Kinect). Our results of a study with 47 participants suggest that immersion and perspective in particular can significantly increase the player's presence, embodiment, motivation, and performance independent of the perceived exertion which was not affected by any condition. Our research gives novel insights which advantages modern room-scale VR systems can offer and how immersion influences the relationship between motivation, performance, and perceived exertion.