Why Larp?! A Synthesis Paper on Live Action Roleplay in Relation to HCI Research and Practice

TL;DR

This synthesis addresses how Live Action Role-Play (larp) intersects with Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) by combining a practitioner overview, a structured ACM literature review, and narrative exemplars. It shows larp as a versatile method, design tool, and design research medium capable of sensitizing participants, ideating, and exploring possible futures, while highlighting opportunities to formalize best practices and broaden engagement beyond academia. The work identifies major themes—embodied interaction, playfulness, participatory design, and futuring—and maps them onto HCI theories such as Research through Design and value-based design. Collectively, the paper advocates for deeper collaboration between larp practitioners and HCI researchers to expand the design space for future interactive experiences and education.

Abstract

Live action roleplay (larp) has a wide range of applications, and can be relevant in relation to HCI. While there has been research about larp in relation to topics such as embodied interaction, playfulness and futuring published in HCI venues since the early 2000s, there is not yet a compilation of this knowledge. In this paper, we synthesise knowledge about larp and larp-adjacent work within the domain of HCI. We present a practitioner overview from an expert group of larp researchers, the results of a literature review, and highlight particular larp research exemplars which all work together to showcase the diverse set of ways that larp can be utilised in relation to HCI topics and research. This paper identifies the need for further discussions toward establishing best practices for utilising larp in relation to HCI research, as well as advocating for increased engagement with larps outside academia.

Figures (10)

• Figure 1: Screenshots from the homepage for the digital character sheet tool Ensemble, developed specifically to be used for larps.
• Figure 2: Blodsband reloaded larp. Here is a player using the in-game hacking program at the larp (see 7 in Appendix \ref{['appendix: larps']}). (Photo: Larpology)
• Figure 3: Technology designed for and used at various larps. Image (a) is of a medical facility used at the futuristic larp called Mission Together (see 26 in Appendix \ref{['appendix: larps']}) and Image (b) is of a control station from the larp Odysseus (see 25 in Appendix \ref{['appendix: larps']}).
• Figure 4: Shows Mutanternas tidsålder larp, (Photo: LajvVerkstaden), see 14 in Appendix \ref{['appendix: larps']}
• Figure 5: In Beyond the Neural Horizon everyone played hackers - or rather their digital avatars, but in a physical room. The venue was a physical manifestation of the internet. You played a digital version of yourself, treating digital technology as a world in itself (see 6 in Appendix \ref{['appendix: larps']}). (Photo: Atropos)