Useful Field of View
See the centre and the edges at once
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What is the Useful Field of View?
The Useful Field of View is the area of the visual field from which you can take in information in a single glance, without moving your eyes or head. The UFOV test, developed by Karlene Ball and colleagues, measures it by flashing a central target and a peripheral target at the same time, then asking people to report both. Harder versions add clutter around the peripheral target.
Researchers use UFOV tasks to look at how quickly visual information can be processed and how attention is spread between the centre and the edges of vision. The test has been studied in relation to driving safety in older adults. The Neuroptimize game uses the same structure: a vehicle in the centre and a gold target further out flash together, and you report both.
How to play the Useful Field of View
- Each session has 12 rounds. Keep your eyes on the + in the centre of the screen until the display flashes.
- A vehicle appears in the centre and a gold dot appears on one of eight spokes around it, both for a fraction of a second. A scrambled pattern of lines then covers the screen.
- First choose which vehicle was in the centre from the two options shown. On a keyboard, use the left and right arrow keys or 1 and 2.
- Then tap the spoke where the gold dot appeared. On a keyboard, the number pad works as a compass: 8 is up, 6 is right, 2 is down and so on.
- A round only counts as correct if both answers are right. The results screen shows how many centre and edge answers you got right, plus the display time for that level.
- As the level rises, the flash gets shorter, from about 450 milliseconds at level 1 down to about 90 at level 30. Grey triangles start to crowd the display, and more vehicle types join from level 12.
- From level 15 the gold dot can appear on the middle ring as well as the outer one, and from level 20 the distractors become amber diamonds that look much more like the target.
Strategies and tips
Never chase the gold dot
The flash is too short for an eye movement to help, and looking away from the centre makes you miss the vehicle. Keep your gaze locked on the + and let your attention, not your eyes, spread outward.
Take in the whole display
Try to see the screen as a single picture rather than focusing on the centre alone. You are aiming to register the vehicle shape and the direction of the brightest spot at the same moment.
Learn the vehicle outlines
From level 12 you may need to tell a car, truck, bus and van apart. The truck has a separate cab, the bus a long row of windows and the van a tall boxy body, so a quick glance at the silhouette is often enough.
Remember a direction, not a spot
You only need to report which of the eight spokes held the target, not which ring. Encode it as a clock direction, such as "two o'clock", which is easy to hold while you answer the vehicle question first.
Look for the glow at level 20
From level 20 the distractors turn amber and diamond-shaped. The real target is a round gold dot with a soft glow, so look for roundness and brightness rather than colour alone.
The science behind the Useful Field of View
The useful field of view (UFOV) is the area of the visual field from which information can be taken in during a single glance, without moving the eyes or head. The UFOV test, developed by Karlene Ball and colleagues, measures it with briefly presented central and peripheral targets and has been studied in relation to driving safety in older adults.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Useful Field of View test?
The Useful Field of View (UFOV) test measures how much visual information you can take in during one brief glance without moving your eyes. It flashes a central target and a peripheral target together and asks you to identify both. It was developed by Karlene Ball and colleagues.
Is the useful field of view the same as peripheral vision?
Not quite. Peripheral vision is about what your eyes can physically detect away from the centre. The useful field of view is about how much of that area you can actually process and report in a brief glance, especially while also attending to something in the centre.
Why do I have to identify the centre vehicle as well?
The centre task keeps your attention and gaze at the middle, just like the original UFOV test. It makes the task about dividing attention, since you must handle the centre and the edge at the same time. That is why a round only counts when both answers are correct.
Is the Useful Field of View game free?
Useful Field of View is a Pro game in Neuroptimize, and Pro starts with a 7-day free trial. Free players can also get it as the Pro game of the day in their daily workout.