Gamification: A playful future?

What is Gamification?

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification?

Badges

Points

High-Score

Airline-Miles Levels

Engagement

Loyalty

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification is:

...the use of elements of game design in non-game contexts.*

*Source: Deterding et. Al „Gamification: Toward a definition“; 2011

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookso...

...the use of elements of game design in non-game contexts.

→ this means, let's just make a game out of it?

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification: how it works

...the use of elements of game design in non-game contexts.

→ this means, let's just make a game out of it?

Not quite. It means to apply motivational or feedback techniques that have proven to be useful within games to a 'serious (non-game)

context'.

Why should you care?

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookThe potential of games

Aren't digital games a small niche product?

The retail revenue for the U.S. video games industry reached $ 13.22 billion in 2012*!

*Source: http://www.statista.com/statistics/201093/revenue-of-the-us-video-game-industry/** Source: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/

The total gross of yearly box office in 2012 was roughly 11 billion.**

Is this a represantative comparison?- Probably not.

Is the video game market a small niche market?- Surely not!

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookAren't games for kids?

The average (casual) gamer is:

- 39 years old- 46% are female- 510 million play on social networks- 14% play >1h/day (at work)

*Source: http://www.socialnomics.net/2012/01/20/social-gaming-infographic-81-million-play-each-day-more-stats/Photo: Wilhelm Joys Andersen

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games do: I

Games give clear objectives.

Source: http://de.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Datei:Tetrisgb.jpg&filetimestamp=20090907191647

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games do: II

Games give the player instant feedback.Source: http://www.computerbild.de/fotos/Super-Mario-Galaxy-2-Allgemeine-Tipps-5381209.html

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games do: III

Games reward. Source: http://nightmaremode.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/level-up.jpg

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games do: IV

Games are an interactive experience.

Source: http://www.phonestory.org/

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games do: V

Games give the player a safe space to experiment.

Source: http://iphone.appstorm.net/reviews/games-reviews/minecraft-pocket-edition-updated/

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookWhat games are good at:

Games motivate – a game situation is an invitation to interact.

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookThe goals of gamification

- Gamification improves engagement- Gamification drives participation- Gamification reduces barriers- Gamification is good at breaking down complex tasks into small bits

Gamification gives clear objectives – this drives engagement – engagement increases reach – more reach means more attention!

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification – the potential:

Gigya Study: Through gamification Pepsi, Nike und Dell could boost interaction on their sites by 29%*.

Some numbers:

- commenting +13%- sharing to Twitter, FB and other social networks +22%- content discovery +68%

Source: http://venturebeat.com/2013/03/26/billions-of-online-user-actions-say-gamification-increases-site-engagement-29/

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification: In a nutshellBoring stuff becomes more interesting by:

- users have clear goals

- implementing made up (fun) rules

- instant feedback for activities Clear objectives + instant. Feedback = more Engagement, lower bounce rate

- personal progress: comprehensible, bragging-rights, shareable Users experience self-efficacy

Photo: Christoph Voglbauer

Basic gamificationmechanics

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification mechanics I

points = instant feedback

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification mechanics II

Badges = Reward, clear goals

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification mechanics III

Highscores = Competition, bragging rights

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification mechanics IV

optional = epic background story

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification: A success story

Which successful social media service features gamification mechanics that one would not expect?

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification: A success story

Goal: Facebook needs as much fresh content as often as possible.

Task: Connect and Network with friends!

Instant Feedback: Likes, comments, shares

Points: likes, friends, followers, talking about

Social status = can be represented

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookAn approach to gamifying things:

If task 'XYZ' was a game,

WHAT'S BAD ABOUT IT(read: WHY DOES IT SUCK)

AND HOW COULD IT BE FUN?

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookRisks and obstacles

- Cost: Good design and execution takes time and money.

- Extrinsic motivation can hurt intrinsic motivation in the long run.--> when users are 'payed' to do something they are less likely to voluntarily perform the same task afterwards*

- Quizzes? *yawn*

See e.g. Scott Nicholson: Meaningful Gamification: http://scottnicholson.com/pubs/meaningfulframework.pdf

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookSerious Game

Serious Games = Games that were developed with the objective to convey different topics through a game to the player.

This games are especially designed to have a defined impact on the 'real world'.

Not really gamification, but partly similiar ambitions.

Gamification: Some examples

Crowdsourcing

Source: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München / ARTigo

ARTigo

Source: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München / ARTigo

Image Tagging:

Players describepieces of art through tags

same tags as other player= more points

Highscores

Productivity tools

Source: epic Win

To-DOs as a role playing game

Epic Win

Source: epic Win

To-DOs as a RPG

- Appointments become quests

- completed quests grant improvements to the character's attributes

- the players character ventures along a path, finds items

- instant feedback, clear goals, bragging rights, rewards consistency

Fitness

Source: https://www.zombiesrungame.com/

Virtual zombies as personal trainers

Zombies, Run!

Source: https://www.zombiesrungame.com/

- working out through missions

- For extra fitness players are chased by zombies

- players build their own base

- working out becomes more interesting through an epic background story

Productivity tools

Source: http://www.memrise.com/

Learn languages

Memrise

Source: http://www.memrise.com/

Learn languages:

- words and phrases become plants

- players water these plants through practicing the words and phrases

- The player's garden grows: clear goals - instant feedback representable progress

- Facebook integration for extra social motivation

Alternative Öffentlichkeiten gewinnen?Emergency-Response

- During superstorm „Sandy“

- Call for aid and donations

- management of volunteers

- flow of information through social media

- People want to help, but don't know where and how to start. The Red Cross shows how.

- self-efficacy

Source: American Red Cross

Political context I

Source: http://gamethenews.net/

Games as an expressive tool

Game the news

Source: http://gamethenews.net/

Games as an expressive tool

- current news can be experienced (and possibly better understood) through playing games.

- Players experience e.g. the complexity of the situation in Syria or the inhuman workload and conditions of uzbeki child laborers

Political context II

Source: http://www.newsgaming.com/games/index12.htm

Games as an expressive tool

September 12th

Source: http://www.newsgaming.com/games/index12.htm

A game as a statement

- Violence breeds more violence

- players launch rockets at a village and try to kill terrorists

- sooner or later the rocket kills civilians, creating more terrorists

- the game goes on indefinitely

Political context III

Source: http://www.tiltfactor.org/profit-seed

Games as an expressive tool

Profit Seed

Source: http://www.tiltfactor.org/profit-seed

The power of the corporation

- The corporation's protected seeds are everywhere

- So are the corporation's lawyers

- The game demonstrates how difficult a farmer's life is who wants to use their own seeds.

Political context IV

Source: http://www.idfblog.com/

Using gamification in apolemic

Israeli Defense Blog

Source: http://www.idfblog.com/

Gamifying the IDF's pointof view

- User become a part of the virtual army

- Engagement on the IDF Blog is improved

- Goals of campaign = Goals of the gamification

- Ranks achieve military user

Political context V

Source: https://realitydrop.org/

Climate change

Drop Reality

Source: https://realitydrop.org/

Goal: Destroy myths about climate change

- The internet should be flooded with the campaign's point of view

- The problem 'Climate change – how can I help?' is broken down

- User gets easy point of entry

- Entering the discussion through copy-paste → Drop Reality; a „Weltanschauung“ is spread

FacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookFacebookGamification examples

- an additional channel in a campaign's media mix: e.g. Israeli Defense Blog Gamification, Drop Reality

- crowdsourcing: e.g. ARTigo, Fold it, Re-captcha

- productivity tool: z.B. Epic Win, Toshl Finance

- boost interaction: Nike+, Get Glue, Foursquare

- Health: Super Better, MySugr

Mag. Vincent Tschaiknervt@digitalaffairs.at | +43 664 22 62 486

@vvolumefacebook.com/vincenttschaikner

at.linkedin.com/in/vincenttschaikner/

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