Silent Hill 3

A Typology of Rumble

"A Typology of Rumble" argues that controller rumble, though ubiquitous in digital games since the late 1990s, has been overlooked in game studies and design literature.

• Controller rumble has been ubiquitous in digital games since the late 1990s but remains overlooked in game studies and design literature, which has focused more on haptics in virtual environments and exergames.
• The study's empirical base is nine single-player action and adventure titles spanning the PlayStation 1 through PlayStation 4 generations, analysed through close play and extended sessions rather than player-response data.
• The central contribution is a two-dimensional typology classifying rumble by feedback source (environment, object, interface, or body, with body subdivided into kinaesthetic, physiological, and extrasensory) and by level of operation (ludic, dramatic, or technical), drawing on semiotic denotation and connotation.