Johannes Pfauمشاهده پروفایل
استادیار
Johannes Pfau is an Assistant Professor at Utrecht University, specializing in the intersection of video games, artificial intelligence, analytics, and data science. He is part of the Interaction/Multimedia group within the Information and Computing Sciences department. His academic journey includes a Doctor of Engineering degree (Computer Science) from the University of Bremen and a Master of Science degree in Cognitive Science from Osnabrück University. Pfau's research focuses on applying AI and data science techniques to video games, with particular emphasis on Deep Player Behavior Modeling (DPBM), player-driven analytics, and the psychology of play. His work often involves direct collaboration with the gaming industry to implement and evaluate innovations. He runs Wingman, the largest endgame analytics platform for Guild Wars 2, which has sparked numerous tools and studies based on behavioral data and close engagement with player communities. His research spans multiple domains including game analytics, player behavior modeling, applied games, and the psychology of play. Analysis of his recent publications shows a strong trend toward player-centered approaches to game design and analytics, with increasing focus on cultural dimensions of gaming, player performance optimization, and the application of advanced data mining techniques to understand complex player behaviors across diverse game genres. Best Paper Finalist: Dungeons & Replicants: Automated Game Balancing via Deep Player Behavior Modeling Honorable Mention: Player-Driven Game Analytics: The Case of Guild Wars 2 Best Paper: A Data-Driven Design of AR Alternate Reality Games to Measure Resilience Student Game Competition Runner-Up: The Reversed Turing Test Pfau has advised multiple PhD students including Zhaoqing "Jimmy" Teng, Ioannis Bikas, and Sai Siddartha Maram. His teaching portfolio includes developing and teaching the full course "AI-Driven Content Generation" at Utrecht University (2024-25), as well as contributing to courses on Gamification and Applied Games, Scientific Methods for Computing Science, and guest lecturing at UC Santa Cruz and University of Bremen. His industry collaborations span major game companies including ArenaNet (Guild Wars 2), NCSoft (Aion, Lineage II), Daedalic Entertainment, and Riot Games (League of Legends).
