🎮 The Software Modeling Paradox in Videogames

An Empirical Evaluation of Unreal Blueprints vs. Unity Visual Scripting

This directory contains the artifact package and all the necessary materials to replicate the experiment comparing Unreal Blueprints and Unity Visual Scripting.

📂 Folder Structure

The artifact is organized into two main directories:

01_EXPERIMENT (Experiment Materials)

• 101_Forms&Exercises: Task sheets for each group, plus the Unreal and Unity projects containing the exercises to solve.

• 102_SupportMaterial: Reference material that participants could consult while performing the experiment tasks.

• 103_SessionMaterial: Instructor materials used during the session, including task explanation videos.

• 104_CorrectionMaterial: Solutions to the tasks and the grading rubric.

02_RESULTS (Data and Results)

• 201_DATASET: Data files (.csv) containing all measured variables and factors.

• 202_DATASET: Data files (.sav) containing all measured variables and factors.

• 203_RESULTS: Results featuring Boxplot and histogram visualizations for all variables (.pdf format).

• 204_RESULTS: Results featuring Boxplot and histogram visualizations for all variables (.spv format).

• 205_FOCUS_GROUP: Full data transcripts and records from the focus group sessions.

🛠️ Installation Guide

This guide describes the steps to install and configure the required software to run both experiment environments: Unity and Unreal Engine.

A. Unity

1. Requirements Ensure you have the following software downloaded:

• Unity 6.0 (6000.0.0.61f)

2. Installation Steps

1. Download and install Unity Hub.

2. Log in with an existing Unity account or create a new one.

3. In Unity Hub, navigate to Installs → Add.

4. Select Unity 6 (minimum version 6000.0.61f1).

5. Enable the recommended modules: Visual Scripting and .NET / C# Scripting Support.

6. Click Next → Install and wait for the installation to complete.

3. Verify Unity Visual Scripting Unity Visual Scripting is included by default in Unity 6, so no additional installation should be required. To verify:

1. Open Unity Hub and create a temporary project.

2. Open the project and navigate to Window → Package Manager.

3. In the upper-left corner, select Unity Registry.

4. Search for Visual Scripting and confirm its status is Installed. (If it is not installed, select it and click Install).

5. Close Unity and delete the temporary project from Unity Hub.

B. Unreal Engine

1. Requirements

• Epic Games Launcher

2. Installation Steps

1. Open the Epic Games Launcher and log in.

2. Navigate to Unreal Engine > Library.

3. Install Unreal Engine version 5.3.2.

3. Install Fab Visual Studio Integration Tool

1. Add the plugin from the Marketplace link to your library.

2. Open the Epic Games Launcher and go to Unreal Engine > Library > Plugins (Fabs section).

3. Assign the plugin to Unreal Engine 5.3.2.

🚀 Running the Experiment Projects

Running the Unity Project

1. Unzip the UVS_Exercise folder located in the 101_Forms&Exercises directory.

2. Go to Unity Hub, click Add (+), select the unzipped folder, and click Continue.

Running the Unreal Engine Project

1. Decompress the Experiment_Unreal.zip file located in the 101_Forms&Exercises directory.

2. Open the project by double-clicking the Experiment_Unreal.uproject file.

3. Unreal Engine 5.3.2 will load the project. (Ensure the Fab plugin is enabled if prompted).

⚠️ Note: The documentation found within this folder contains texts in Spanish, as this is the language in which the experiment was originally executed.