Use of a Cooperative Video Game to Assess Communication in Distributed Software-Development Teams

Abstract

An experimental study is presented that evaluates the quality of online communication within distributed software-development teams using the cooperative video game Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes. A mixed-methods experiment (qualitative–quantitative) was designed in which pairs of remotely connected participants collaborate under time pressure to defuse virtual devices. Through observation logs and automated analysis of verbal interactions, we identified key indicators of communicative effectiveness, such as message clarity, response latency, use of filler words, literal reading of instructions, and balance of participation. The results show significant differences between teams with effective and deficient communication, indicating that factors such as contextual adaptation, discourse structuring, and role cooperation distinguish higher-performing teams. The video game proved to be a valid tool to simulate real collaborative environments, providing replicable data that are comparable to the dynamics of distributed software projects. This work proposes an innovative methodological framework for evaluating communication skills in remote teams, with both theoretical implications (in the measurement of soft skills) and practical implications for the management and training of software-development teams.