Five models of players' rule behavior for game balance

Abstract We present a five-part model of players' rule behaviors in a multiplayer online game (utilization, emergence, usefulness, usefulness-balance, and balance-usefulness). The model was identified through a pilot study involving nine expert players. The model fitness was then verified in a main experiment involving eighteen regular players. Our results showed that the utilization (4 players) and emergence (4 players) models were most frequently used, followed by the balance-usefulness (3 players), usefulness (3 players), and usefulness-balance (2 players) models. The coding scheme for this research was built from video observations and a literature review. We suggest this model is applicable for the implementation of a human-like virtual character's artificial intelligence algorithm in the game editors and the server loader for quality assurance.