Immersion in the virtual environment: the effect of a musical score on the video gaming experience

This study provides one of very few experimental investigations into the impact of a musical soundtrack on the video gaming experience. Participants were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: game-with-music, game-without-music, or music-only. After playing each of three segments of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (Electronic Arts, 2002)--or, in the music-only condition, listening to the musical score that accompanies the scene--subjects responded on 21 verbal scales. Results revealed that some, but not all, of the verbal scales exhibited a statistically significant difference due to the presence of a musical score. In addition, both gender and age level were shown to be significant factors for some, but not all, of the verbal scales. Details of the specific ways in which music affects the gaming experience are provided in the body of the paper.