Edward Melcer

Associate Professor | Director of ALT Games Lab

Carleton University School of Computer Science

edwardmelcer@cunet.carleton.ca | edwardmelcer.net


Research Interests

Human-computer interaction; game design; educational games and technologies; embodiment; tangibles; AR/MR/VR; alternative controllers; co-located play; game studies

Education

  • May 2018 Ph.D. in Computer Science, NYU Tandon School of Engineering
    January 2016 M.S. in Computer Science, NYU Tandon School of Engineering
    Specializations: HCI, Educational Game Design, Embodiment
    GPA: 3.9
  • May 2013 B.S. in Computer Science, Polytechnic Institute of NYU
    Specializations: Web Development, Digital Game Design and Development
    GPA: 3.8, Summa Cum Laude

Professorial Positions

  • July 2024 - Present Associate Professor, Carleton University
  • July 2023 - June 2024 Associate Professor, University of California, Santa Cruz
  • July 2018 - June 2023 Assistant Professor, University of California, Santa Cruz
  • April 2017 - June 2017 Lecturer, University of California, Santa Cruz

Honors and Awards

  1. CHI — Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Audio Matters Too: How Audial Avatar Customization Enhances Visual Avatar Customization
  2. Meaningful Play — People's Choice Award
    Mad Mixologist
  3. ICA — Most Technologically Innovative Award
    Mad Mixologist
  4. AIIDE — Best Artifact Nomination
    Searching for Balanced 2D Brawler Games: Successes and Failures of Automated Evaluation
  5. CHI — Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    What is a Visual Novel?
  6. ACS — Excellence in Research Award (Surgical Education Category)
    ENTRUST: A Serious Game-based Virtual Patient Platform To Assess Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs)
  7. FDG — Exceptional Paper Award
    Getting Academical: A Choice-Based Interactive Storytelling Game for Teaching Responsible Conduct of Research
  8. IndieCade — Official Finalist Selection
    Mad Mixologist
  9. IndieCade — Spotlight Award Nominee: Cooperative Design
    Mad Mixologist
  10. IndieCade — Official Night Games Selection
    Mad Mixologist
  11. FDG — Best Reviewer Honorable Mention Award
  12. CHI — Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Bots & (Main)Frames: Exploring the Impact of Tangible Blocks and Collaborative Play in an Educational Programming Game
  13. CHI — Late-Breaking Work Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Bridging the Physical Divide: A Design Framework for Embodied Learning Games and Simulations
  14. Serious Games Showcase & Challenge — Best Student Game Award
    Mad Mixologist
  15. FDG — Best Paper Award
    Games Research Today: Analyzing the Academic Landscape 2000-2014

Game Demonstrations and Presentations

  1. Meaningful Play Game Exhibition — Mad Mixologist
    ICA 2022 Digital Artifacts Exhibition — Mad Mixologist
  2. Makers Play Showcase — Mad Mixologist
  3. IndieCade Festival — Mad Mixologist
    US Census Bureau, Opportunity Project Demo Day — Disaster Awareness Game
  4. IndieCade Festival — SceneSampler
    Come Out & Play Festival — SceneSampler
  5. Serious Games Showcase & Challenge — Bots & (Main)Frames
    IndieCade East Festival — Veterinarian's Hospital: Ruff Day
  6. Come Out & Play Festival — Veterinarian's Hospital: Ruff Day
    NYU Engineering Research Expo — Carb Crush
  7. World Science Festival (Innovation Arcade) — Boulderdash

Invited Talks, Interviews, Panels, and Presentations

  1. Panelist
    Edward Melcer, Micah Hrehovcsik, Michael Miljanovic, Ciprian Paduraru. (2024). "Emerging Advanced Technologies for Games and Software Engineering". At 8th International Workshop on Games and Software Engineering, Lisbon, Portugal.
  2. Speaker
    Edward Melcer, Andrew Dunne, Bridget Ho. (2023). "A Macro-Analysis of Entertainment and Serious Board Games from 1962 - 2022". At GENeration Analog - The Tabletop Games and Education Conference, Indianapolis, USA.
  3. Panelist
    Edward Melcer, Tatiana Vilela dos Santos, Enric Llagostera, Mona Bozdog, Lynn Parker. (2023). "Research-creation of alternative controller games". At Foundations of Digital Games Conference, Lisbon, Portugal.
  4. Speaker
    Edward Melcer. (2021). "Academical: A Choice-Based Interactive Narrative Game for Teaching Responsible Conduct of Research". At New Gen Learning, UC Santa Cruz, California, USA.
  5. Panelist
    Edward Melcer, Elin Carstensdottir, Akram Taghavi-Burris, Nick Fortugno, Michael Baker, David (D.S.) Cohen, Allen Turner, Clay Ewing. (2021). "Coffee and Candid Conversations with Faculty". At IndieCade Horizons, Virtual.
  6. Panelist
    Katherine Isbister, Sri Kurniawan, Magy Seif El-Nasr, Chaima Jemmali, and Edward Melcer. (2021). "Center for Computational Experience: Serious Games Panel". At Center for Computational Experience, UC Santa Cruz, California, USA.
  7. Interview
    Edward Melcer. (2021). "Makers Arcade: Mad Mixologist". At Indie Makers Syndicate: Makers Play Showcase, Virtual.
  8. Speaker
    Edward Melcer. (2020). "Building Better (Educational) Games: Exploring Embodied Design Decisions that Impact Learning Outcomes". At SESAME Colloquium, UC Berkley, California, USA.
  9. Co-Speaker
    John Dominic Diez & Edward Melcer. (2020). "Communication Gaps between Video Game Researchers". At International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, Copenhagen, Denmark.
  10. Panelist
    Katherine Isbister, Theresa Tanenbaum, Edward F. Melcer, & Ryan Origin. (2019). "Different by Design Alternative Controller Games and Wearables". At Playful Wearables Panel, IndieCade, Santa Monica, California, USA.
  11. Speaker
    Edward F. Melcer. (2019). "ALT-CTRL: Bringing the Body Back into Serious Games". At Serious Play Conference, Orlando, Florida, USA.
  12. Speaker
    Edward F. Melcer. (2019). "DIY and Alternative Controller Games". At TechTALK: Gaming at the Hardware Boundaries, SEMICON West, San Francisco, California, USA.
  13. Co-Speaker
    Edward F. Melcer & Kristen Safdie. (2019). "Disaster Awareness Games". At Opportunity Project Demo Day, US Census Bureau, Maryland, USA.
  14. Panelist
    Jen Helms, Edward F. Melcer, Vincent Minoue. (2019). "Gaming for Learning - Fireside Chat with Ubisoft". At Ubisoft San Francisco, California, USA.
  15. Speaker
    Edward F. Melcer. (2018). "ALT-CTRL: Bringing Embodied Physical Interactions into the Design of Games and Learning". At Collaborative Learning of Usability Experiences (CLUE) Seminar Series, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Peer Reviewed Publications

Book Chapters

  1. Shields, S, and Melcer, E. (2024). “Papers, Please”. Learning, Education & Games, Volume 4: 50 Games for Inclusion, Equity, and Justice. ETC Press.
  2. Melcer, E F, Liebert, C A, Shields, S, Keehl, O G, Tsai, J, Camacho, F, Eddington, H, Trickey, A, Lee, M, Merrell, S B, Korndorffer Jr, J R, and Lin, D T (2023). "ENTRUST: Co-Design and Validation of a Serious Game for Assessing Clinical Decision-Making and Readiness for Entrustment". Software Engineering for Games in Serious Contexts - Theories, Methods, Tools, and Experiences. Springer.
  3. Grasse, K M, Melcer, E F, Kremenski, M., Junius, N., Ryan, J., & Wardrip-Fruin, N. (2021). “Academical: A Choice-Based Interactive Storytelling Game for Enhancing Moral Reasoning, Knowledge, and Attitudes in Responsible Conduct of Research”. Games and Narrative: Theory and Practice. Springer.
  4. Melcer, E. F. (2021). “Foundations of Alternative Controller Games (GAME 202)”. Teaching the Game: An interdisciplinary collection of game course syllabi. ETC Press.
  5. Melcer, E. F., & Isbister, K. (2021). “Learning with the Body: A Design Framework for Embodied Learning Games and Simulations”. Software Engineering Perspectives in Computer Game Development. CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group.
  6. Melcer, E. F., & Cuerdo, M. A. M. (2020). “Death & Rebirth in Platformer Games”. Game User Experience and Player-Centered Design. Springer.

Journal Articles

  1. Wong, L. Y., Lam N., Son Y. A., Eddington H., Arnow K. D., Tsai J., Anand A., Peralta F. C., Shields S., Melcer E. F., Lin D. T., Liebert C. A. (2024). "Correlation of Performance on the ENTRUST Assessment Platform with Other Variables in Competency-Based Surgical Education". Journal of Surgical Education on September 18, 2024, in press. JSURED-D-24-00332R1.
  2. Liang, Z., Melcer, E., Khotchasing, K., Chen, S., Hwang, D., & Hoang, N. H. (2024). "The Role of Relevance in Shaping Perceptions of Sleep Hygiene Games Among University Students: Mixed Methods Study". JMIR Serious Games, 12, e64063.
  3. Liang, Z., Melcer, E., Khotchasing, K., & Hoang, N. H. (2024). "Co-design personal sleep health technology for and with university students". Frontiers in Digital Health, 6, 1371808.
  4. Lee, M.C., Melcer, E.F., Merrell, S.B., Wong, L.Y., Shields, S., Eddington, H., Trickey, A.W., Tsai, J., Korndorffer Jr, J.R., Lin, D.T. & Liebert, C.A. (2023). “Usability of ENTRUST as an Assessment Tool for Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs): A Mixed Methods Analysis”. Journal of Surgical Education, 80(11), pp.1693-1702.
  5. Liebert, C. A., Melcer, E. F., Eddington, H., Trickey, A., Shields, S., Lee, M., Korndorffer Jr, J. R., Bekele, A., Wren, S. M., & Lin, D. T. (2023). "Correlation of Performance on ENTRUST and Traditional Oral Objective Structured Clinical Examination for High-Stakes Assessment in the College of Surgeons of East, Central, and Southern Africa". Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 237(1), 117-127.
  6. Lin, D. T., Melcer, E. F., Keehl, O., Eddington, H., Trickey, A. W., Tsai, J., Camacho, F., Merrell, S.B., Korndorffer Jr, J., & Liebert, C. A. (2023). "ENTRUST: A Serious Game-Based Virtual Patient Platform to Assess Entrustable Professional Activities in Graduate Medical Education". Journal of Graduate Medical Education, 15(2), 228-236.
  7. Bucchiarone, A., Cooper, K. M., Lin, D., Melcer, E. F., & Sung, K. (2023). "Games and Software Engineering: Engineering fun, inspiration, and motivation". ACM SIGSOFT Software Engineering Notes, 48(1), 85-89.
  8. Grasse, K. M., Kremenski, M., Mateas, M., Wardrip-Fruin, N., & Melcer, E. F. (2022). “Using Self-Determination Theory to Explore Enjoyment of Educational Interactive Narrative Games: A Case Study of Academical”. Frontiers in Virtual Reality. 3:847120.
  9. Liebert, C. A., Melcer, E. F., Keehl, O., Eddington, H., Trickey, A. W., Lee, M., Tsai, J., Camacho, F., Bereknyei Merrell, S., Korndorffer, J. R., Lin, D. T. (2022). “Validity Evidence for ENTRUST as an Assessment of Surgical Decision-Making for the Inguinal Hernia Entrustable Professional Activity (EPA)”. Journal of Surgical Education, 79(6), e202-e212.
  10. Keehl, O., & Melcer, E. F. (2021). “Music to my ears: developing kanji stroke knowledge through an educational music game”. Multimodal Technologies and Interaction, 5(12):83.
  11. Liebert, C. A., Lin, D. T., Melcer, E. F., Keehl, O. G., Trickey, A., Eddington, H., Merrell, S. B., & Korndorffer Jr, J. R. (2021). “ENTRUST: A Serious Game-Based Virtual Patient Platform to Assess Entrustable Professional Activities in Surgical Education". Journal of the American College of Surgeons, 233(5), S224.
  12. Nguyen, T. H. D., Melcer, E., Canossa, A., Isbister, K., & El-Nasr, M. S. (2018). “Seagull: A Bird’s-Eye View of the Evolution of Technical Games Research”. Entertainment Computing, 26, 88-104.
  13. Höök, K., Caramiaux, B., Erkut, C., Forlizzi, J., Hajinejad, N., Haller, M., Hummels, C. C. M., Isbister, K., Jonsson, M. Khut, G., Loke, L., Lottridge, D., Marti, P., Melcer, E., Müller, F., Petersen, M. G., Schiphorst, T., Segura, E. M., Ståhl, A., Svanæs, D., Tholander, J., & Tobiasson, H. (2018). “Embracing first-person perspectives in soma-based design”. Informatics, 5(1), p. 8. Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute.

Conference Papers

  1. Hwang, D., & Melcer, E. (2024). "Mindfulness Techniques Taught Through Game Mechanics". In Companion Proceedings of the 2024 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (pp. 300-305).
  2. Choi, E. S., Xie, Y., Chen, S., Carstensdottir, E., & Melcer, E. F. (2024). "Scented Days: Exploring the Capacity of Smell Narratives". In Companion Proceedings of the 2024 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (pp. 288-293).
  3. Hwang, D., & Melcer, E. F. (2024). "Exploring Engagement in Idle Game Design". In 2024 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
  4. Shields, S., Calderwood, A., Johnson-Bey, S., Wardrip-Fruin, N., Mateas, M., & Melcer, E. (2024). "Generating Together: Lessons Learned from Developing an Educational Visual Novel with AI Collaboration". In 2024 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
  5. Johnson-Bey, S., Shields, S., Wardrip-Fruin, N., & Melcer, E. (2024)."Academical: A Dynamic Interactive Narrative Game for Responsible Conduct of Research Training". In 2024 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-2). IEEE.
  6. Cuerdo, M., Baskaran, D., Yang, T., & Melcer, E. (2024). "(Anti) Social Challenge: Emotionally Challenging Interaction Dynamics in Multiplayer Experiences". In 2024 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
  7. Nguyen, D. V., Melcer, E. F., & Adams, D. (2024). "Exploring Gender and Racial/Ethnic Bias Against Video Game Streamers: Comparing Perceived Gameplay Skill and Viewer Engagement". In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-11).
  8. Shields, S., Mateas, M., & Melcer, E. (2024). "Towards Qualia-Driven Game Design". In Proceedings of DiGRA 2024.
  9. Baskaran, D., Ringland, K. E., & Melcer, E. F. (2024). "Playing Well Together with a Reward System: Understanding Player Preferences for the PS Trophy System". In Proceedings of the 19th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-4).
  10. Maram, S. S., Amato, A., Troiano, G. M., Sutherland, S. C., Matuk, C., Melcer, E., Carstensdottir, E., Harteveld, C. & Seif El-Nasr, M. (2024). "An Instructor's Lens into the Role of AI in Teaching Experimental Research via Gamification". In Proceedings of the 39th ACM/SIGAPP Symposium on Applied Computing (pp. 98-100).
  11. Cuerdo, M., Baskaran, D., & Melcer, E. (2024). "Exploring how emotional challenge and affective design in games relates to player reflection". In Proceedings of the 19th international conference on the foundations of digital games (pp. 1-12).
  12. Shields, S., & Melcer, E. F. (2024). "Soothing Systems: A Meditative Somaesthetic Experience". In Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-5).
  13. Johns, M. J., Ezenwa, E. C., Lee, S., Maiorana, T., Wood, C., Levano, J. D., Tesfay, R. A., Takami, M., Dodd, C. A., Li, M., Manning, H., Pak, R., Chen, L., Saini, R. K., Escarce, M., Hendawy, M., El-Nasr, M. S., Melcer, E. F., & Isbister, K. (2024). "Participatory Design of a Serious Game to Improve Wildfire Preparedness with Community Residents and Experts". In Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-8).
  14. Cuerdo, M. A. M., Mahajan, A., Mao, J., & Melcer, E. F. (2023). "Try Again?: A Macro-Level Taxonomy of the Challenge and Failure Process in Games". In 2023 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
  15. Best Artifact Nomination
    Shields, S., Mawhorter, R., Melcer, E., & Mateas, M. (2022). "Searching for balanced 2D brawler games: successes and failures of automated evaluation". In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (Vol. 18, No. 1, pp. 189-198).
  16. Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Kao, D., Ratan, R., Mousas, C., Joshi, A., & Melcer, E. F. (2022). "Audio matters too: How audial avatar customization enhances visual avatar customization". In Proceedings of the 2022 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-27).
  17. Keehl, O., Kao, D., & Melcer, E. F. (2022). "Zen Hanzi: A game for raising hanzi component awareness". In Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-11).
  18. Sharma, R., Melcer, E., & Kao, D. (2022). "Exploring relevance, meaningfulness, and perceived learning in entertainment games". In Proceedings of DiGRA 2022 Conference: Bringing Worlds Together.
  19. Picho, K., Osborne, E., Camacho, F., Ouellette, A., Woodford, M., & Melcer, E. (2022). "Resilient IN: Design of an Interactive Narrative HRV-Biofeedback Game to Develop Stereotype and Social Identity Threat Resilience". In Joint International Conference on Serious Games (pp. 84-101). Cham: Springer International Publishing.
  20. Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Camingue, J., Carstensdottir, E., & Melcer, E. F. (2021). "What is a visual novel?". In Proceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction, 5(CHI PLAY), 1-18.
  21. Cuerdo, M. A. M., Mahajan, A., & Melcer, E. F. (2021). "Die-r consequences: Player experience and the design of failure through respawning mechanics". In 2021 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 01-08). IEEE.
  22. Grasse, K. M., Cuerdo, M. A. M., & Melcer, E. F. (2021). "Mad Mixologist: exploring how object placement in tangible play spaces affects collaborative interaction strategies". In 2021 IEEE Conference on Games (CoG) (pp. 1-8). IEEE.
  23. Grasse, K. M., Melcer, E. F., Kreminski, M., Junius, N., & Wardrip-Fruin, N. (2021). "Improving undergraduate attitudes towards responsible conduct of research through an interactive storytelling game". In Extended abstracts of the 2021 CHI conference on human factors in computing systems (pp. 1-8).
  24. Exceptional Paper Award
    Melcer, E. F., Grasse, K. M., Ryan, J., Junius, N., Kreminski, M., Squinkifer, D., Hill, B., & Wardrip-Fruin, N. (2020). "Getting academical: a choice-based interactive storytelling game for teaching responsible conduct of research". In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-12).
  25. Camingue, J., Melcer, E. F., & Carstensdottir, E. (2020). "A (visual) novel route to learning: a taxonomy of teaching strategies in visual novels". In Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-13).
  26. Grasse, K. M., & Melcer, E. F. (2020). "Generation: A novel fabrication game for simulating evolution and natural selection". In Extended Abstracts of the 2020 Annual Symposium on Computer-Human Interaction in Play (pp. 38-42).
  27. Diez, J. D. S., & Melcer, E. F. (2020). "Cookie mania: a serious game for teaching internet cookies to high school and college students". In Serious Games: Joint International Conference, JCSG 2020, Stoke-on-Trent, UK, November 19–20, 2020, Proceedings 6 (pp. 69-77). Springer International Publishing.
  28. Melcer, E. F., Ryan, J., Junius, N., Kreminski, M., Squinkifer, D., Hill, B., & Wardrip-Fruin, N. (2020). "Teaching responsible conduct of research through an interactive storytelling game". In Extended Abstracts of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-10).
  29. Cuerdo, M. A. M., & Melcer, E. F. (2020). "'I'll Be Back': A Taxonomy of Death and Rebirth in Platformer Video Games". In Extended Abstracts of the 2020 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-13).
  30. Kreminski, M., Samuel, B., Melcer, E., & Wardrip-Fruin, N. (2019). "Evaluating AI-based games through retellings". In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (Vol. 15, No. 1, pp. 45-51).
  31. Keehl, O., & Melcer, E. (2019). "Radical tunes: exploring the impact of music on memorization of stroke order in logographic writing systems". In Proceedings of the 14th International conference on the foundations of digital games (pp. 1-6).
  32. Kliewer, K., Melcer, E., & Glisic, B. (2019). "A co-word analysis of the structural health monitoring field". In 12th International Workshop on Structural Health Monitoring: Enabling Intelligent Life-Cycle Health Management for Industry Internet of Things (IIOT), IWSHM (pp. 1512-1516).
  33. Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Melcer, E. F., & Isbister, K. (2018). "Bots & (Main) frames: exploring the impact of tangible blocks and collaborative play in an educational programming game". In Proceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-14).
  34. Isbister, K., Márquez Segura, E., & Melcer, E. F. (2018). "Social affordances at play: Game design toward socio-technical innovation". In Proceedings of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-10).
  35. Melcer, E. F., Astolfi, M. T., Remaley, M., Berenzweig, A., & Giurgica-Tiron, T. (2018). "CTRL-labs: Hand activity estimation and real-time control from neuromuscular signals". In Extended Abstracts of the 2018 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1-4).
  36. Ottmar, E. R., Melcer, E., Abrahamson, D., Nathan, M. J., Fyfe, E., & Smith, C. (2019). "Embodied Mathematical Imagination and Cognition (EMIC) Working Group". In North American Chapter of the International Group for the Psychology of Mathematics Education.
  37. Melcer, E. F., Hollis, V., & Isbister, K. (2017). "Tangibles vs. mouse in educational programming games: Influences on enjoyment and self-beliefs". In Proceedings of the 2017 CHI conference extended abstracts on human factors in computing systems (pp. 1901-1908).
  38. Melcer, E.(2017). "Moving to learn: Exploring the impact of physical embodiment in educational programming games". In Proceedings of the 2017 CHI conference extended abstracts on human factors in computing systems (pp. 301-306).
  39. Melcer, E., & Isbister, K. (2017). "Toward understanding disciplinary divides within games research". In Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-4).
  40. Melcer, E., & Isbister, K. (2017). "Embodiment, collaboration, and challenge in educational programming games: exploring use of tangibles and mouse". In Proceedings of the 12th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (pp. 1-6).
  41. Melcer, E. F. (2017). "Exploring the Effects of Physical Embodiment in a Puzzle-Based Educational Programming Game". In Proceedings of the 2017 ACM SIGCHI Conference on Creativity and Cognition (pp. 532-538).
  42. Compton, K., Melcer, E., & Mateas, M. (2017). "Generominos: Ideation cards for interactive generativity". In Proceedings of the AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence and Interactive Digital Entertainment (Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 49-53).
  43. Late-Breaking Work Best Paper Honorable Mention Award
    Melcer, E. F., & Isbister, K. (2016). "Bridging the physical divide: a design framework for embodied learning games and simulations". In Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 2225-2233).
  44. Melcer, E., & Isbister, K. (2016). "Motion, emotion, and form: exploring affective dimensions of shape". In Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1430-1437).
  45. Melcer, E. F., & Isbister, K. (2016). "Bridging the Physical Learning Divides: A Design Framework for Embodied Learning Games and Simulations". In Proceedings of DiGRA/FDG 2016 Conference.
  46. Best Paper Award
    Melcer, E., Nguyen, T. H. D., Chen, Z., Canossa, A., El-Nasr, M. S., & Isbister, K. (2015). "Games research today: Analyzing the academic landscape 2000-2014". In Proceedings of the 10th International Conference on the Foundations of Digital Games (FDG 2015).
  47. Bowser, A. E., Haimson, O. L., Melcer, E. F., & Churchill, E. F. (2015). "On vintage values: The experience of secondhand fashion reacquisition". In Proceedings of the 33rd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 897-906).
  48. Haimson, O. L., Bowser, A. E., Melcer, E. F., & Churchill, E. F. (2015). "Online inspiration and exploration for identity reinvention". In Proceedings of the 33rd annual ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (pp. 3809-3818).
  49. Melcer, E., & Isbister, K. (2014). "Emotional space: understanding affective spatial dimensions of constructed embodied shapes". In Proceedings of the 2nd ACM symposium on Spatial user interaction (pp. 143-143).
  50. Karlesky, M., Melcer, E., & Isbister, K. (2013). "Open sesame: re-envisioning the design of a gesture-based access control system". In CHI'13 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems (pp. 1167-1172).

Conference Abstracts

  1. Melcer, E. F. (2022). "Mad Mixologist". In Proceedings of the 72nd International Communication Association Conference.
  2. Excellence in Research Award (Surgical Education)
    Lin, D., Liebert, C., Melcer, E., Trickey, A., Eddington, H., Korndorffer, J., Bereknyei-Merrel, S., Keehl, O. (2021). "ENTRUST: A Serious Game-Based Virtual Patient Platform to Assess Entrustable Professional Activities in Surgical Education". In Proceedings of the 2021 American College of Surgeons Clinical Congress.
  3. Melcer, E.F. (2018). "Toward Embodied Learning Mechanics: A Tool to Guide the Design of Physical Interactions in Educational Games". In Proceedings of the 2018 International Academic Conference of Meaningful Play.

Fundraising

In Progress

  • $849,964
    7/1/22 – 6/30/25     NSF RETTL — PI
    Innovating Online Ethics Training Using a Dynamic Narrative Learning Environment
  • $938,521
    8/1/22 – 9/30/25     NSF SCC — Co-PI
    SCC-IRG Track 1 Designing Smart, Sustainable Risk Reduction in Hazard-Prone Communities: Modeling Risk Across Scales of Time and Space
  • $435,277
    5/1/22 – 4/30/25     NSF IUSE — Co-PI
    Collaborative Research: Empowering Students to Design and Conduct Research Studies and Analyze Data from Participants

Completed

  • $7,500
    6/10/22 – 9/30/24     Ilene B. Harris Legacy Fund — PI
    Validity Evidence for ENTRUST, an Innovative Assessment Platform for Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) in Graduate Medical Education
  • $2,160
    7/1/19 – 6/30/24     California Education Learning Lab (CELL) Grant — Collaborator
    E-Games for Active Training in Engineering Design
  • $30,000
    5/1/20 – 4/30/22     Association of Program Directors in Surgery (APDS) Research & Education Fund — PI
    Pilot and Validity Testing of a Serious Game-Based Platform to Assess Surgical
    Decision-Making of Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs)
  • ¥3,000,000 ($28,000)
    9/1/20 – 3/31/21     Interstellar Initiative (NYAS & AMED) — Co-PI
    Development of a collaborative game-based intervention tool to improve preventative care for cardiac conditions
  • $35,000
    2/1/20 – 12/31/20     Stanford School of Medicine Grant — PI
    Developing a Surgeon Assessment Game

Service

Leadership Roles

    FDG 2025
  • Co-Chair — Games Beyond Entertainment Track
    • FDG 2024
  • Chair — Game Design, Studio Practices, and Novel Player Experiences Track
    • 2019 - 2024
  • Organizer — Indie Playtest Night
    • ICSE 2022
  • Co-Organizer — 6th International Workshop on Games and Software Engineering
    • 2021 - 2022
  • Guest Editor — Journal of Multimodal Technologies and Interactions
    • IFIP-ICEC 2021
  • Co-Chair — Tutorials Track
    • CHI 2021
  • Co-Chair — Late-Breaking Work Track
    • 2020
  • Organizer — Indie Dev Mini Talks
    • 2019
  • Co-Organizer — SEMICON West TechTALK

Committee Memberships

    DiGRA 2024
  • Program Committee — Serious Games and Education Track
    • CHI 2023
  • Associate Chair — Games and Play Subcommittee
    • CoG 2021
  • Program Committee — Game Human Computer Interaction Track
    • ICCC 2020
  • Program Committee — Casual Creators Workshop
    • DiGRA 2020
  • Program Committee — Serious Games and Education Track
    • CHI 2019
  • Associate Chair — Games and Play Subcommittee
    • FDG 2019
  • Program Committee — Applied Games and Gameful Design track
    • C&C 2019
  • Program Committee — Papers Track
    • TGPA:DiGRA 2019
  • Program Committee — Special Issue of ToDiGRA for Teaching Games: Pedagogical Approaches
    • PCG 2018
  • Program Committee — 9th Workshop on Procedural Content Generation
    • DSAA 2017
  • Program Committee — Special Session on Game Data Science

Teaching

Undergraduate

  1. COMP 4900 D — Games for Social Good
  2. CMPM 171 — Game Design Studio II
  3. CMPM / ARTG 179 — Foundations of Alternative Controller Games

Graduate

  1. COMP 5900 L — Games for Social Good
  2. GAME 250 — Foundations of Serious Games
    GAME 232 — Advanced Game Technologies (Escape Rooms)
  3. GAME 200 — Game Design Systems
    GAME 202 — Foundations of Alternative Controller Games
  4. GAME 230 — Game Development I
    GAME 255 — Serious Games Studio I
    GAME 250 — Foundations of Serious Games
  5. GAME 255 — Game Serious Games Studio I
    GAME 202 — Foundations of Alternative Controller Games
    GAME 280A — Games Professional Seminar
  6. GAME 235 — Game Development I
    GAME 231 — Game Technologies
    GAME 280A — Games Professional Seminar
  7. GAME 235 — Game Development I
    GAME 231 — Game Technologies
    GAME 250 — Foundations of Serious Games
  8. GAME 280A — Game Professional Seminar

Mentoring and Advising

Postdoctoral Fellows

    Sep 2019 – Sep 2021
  • Katelyn Grasse — Primary Advisor

PhD Students

    Sep 2023 – Current
  • Daeun Hwang — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2021 – Current
  • Samuel Shields — Primary Advisor
    • Jan 2021 – Sep 2024
  • Marjorie Ann Cuerdo — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2023 – June 2024
  • Eunsol Choi — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2018 – June 2023
  • Oleksandra Keehl — Primary Advisor

Masters Students

    Sep 2022 – June 2024
  • Andrew Dunne — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2023 – December 2024
  • Samantha Chen — Independent Study
    • Sep 2023 – December 2024
  • Bridget Ho — Independent Study
    • Sep 2023 – June 2024
  • Sihao Chen — Independent Study
    • Sep 2022 – Mar 2024
  • Tsunghan Yang — Independent Study
    • Jan 2022 – May 2022
  • Jessica Wei — Independent Study
    • Jan 2022 – May 2022
  • Krishna Thiruvengadam — Independent Study
    • Jan 2022 – Mar 2022
  • Jonathan Leland — Independent Study
    • Jan 2022 – Mar 2022
  • Hanu Kancharla — Independent Study
    • Sep 2019 – Dec 2021
  • John Diez — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2021 – Dec 2021
  • Vikki Brown — Independent Study
    • Sep 2021 – Dec 2021
  • Ana Love — Independent Study
    • Sep 2021 – Dec 2021
  • Guanchen Liu — Independent Study
    • April 2021 – Dec 2021
  • Yuuki Min — Independent Study
    • April 2021 – Dec 2021
  • Derusha Baskaran — Independent Study
    • Sep 2019 – Mar 2021
  • Janelynn Camingue — Primary Advisor
    • Sep 2020 – Sep 2021
  • Max Cronce — Independent Study
    • Sep 2019 – Mar 2021
  • Yulin Cai — Sponsored Research Project
    • Jan 2020 – Mar 2021
  • Fatyma Camacho — Sponsored Research Project
    • Jan 2020 – Mar 2021
  • Jason Tsai — Sponsored Research Project
    • Jan 2020 – Mar 2021
  • Ruonan Chen — Sponsored Research Project
    • May 2019 – Sep 2020
  • Marjorie Ann Cuerdo — External Advisor
    • Jan 2019 – April 2019
  • Terry Carroll-Beyak — Independent Study

Undergraduate Students

    Sep 2021 – June 2024
  • David Van Nguyen — Research Project
    • Sep 2020 – June 2023
  • Anika Mahajan — Research Project
    • July 2021 – Dec 2023
  • Ramon Rubio — Research Project
    • April 2021 – April 2023
  • Aaja Ouellette — Research Project
    • April 2021 – April 2023
  • Mason Woodford — Research Project
    • Sep 2020 – Sep 2021
  • Rhea Sharma — Research Project
    • Sep 2018 – Sep 2021
  • Vivian Pham — Research Project
    • Sep 2018 – Sep 2020
  • Max Cronce — Research Project

Industry Positions

    New York, NY
    July 2017 – May 2018
  • CTRL-Labs
    HCI Fellow
    • Brooklyn, NY
    May 2015 – Aug 2015
  • Gigantic Mechanic
    Game Designer

Professional Memberships

    2016 – Current
  • Higher Education Video Games Alliance
    • 2011 – Current
  • Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)
    • 2012 – Current
  • SIGCHI
    • 2014 – 2022
  • New York Academy of Sciences

Skills

  • Programming LanguagesC/C++, C#/Java, Python, JavaScript/ActionScript, Lua
  • Game Engines, Frameworks, & LibrariesUnity, Unreal, Godot, Processing, Arduino, SFML,
    CC65, Ren'py, Phaser, LÖVE, Flash,
    Cinder/OpenFrameworks, Kinect/XNA