Andrzej Marczewski

Gamification Expert, author, consultant and designer. I love to write about it, talk about it and bore people to death with it! If you really want to get to know me, check out the About page.

Analogue vs Digital Gamification

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Card games 1556289315 Analogue vs Digital Gamification

Gamification is often thought about as a digital realm, but that is not the case at all! Some of the best gamification I have seen has been “analogue”, or not digital. I myself have written about simple gamification experiments with eh kids that were entirely paper-based.

Just like games, gamification can be just as effective in the non-digital world as it can in the digital world. Think about it, games have existed since history began, with games like Senet being dated back to 3000BC in Egypt and evidence of dice like objects as far back as 5000BC. Read More ...

Introduction to Gamification Part 7: Rewards and Reward Schedules

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Intro to Gamification Part 7 Introduction to Gamification Part 7 Rewards and Reward Schedules

In the last chapter, I briefly touched on reward schedules. The most basic way to define reward schedules is that they are a set of rules that define when a reward (or any kind of feedback) is given to the user. I am going to discuss three core types of reward schedule, Random Rewards, Fixed Rewards and Time Dependent. I’m also going to introduce some ideas on how to balance the release of rewards and their perceived value.

Random Rewards

These tough to explain, and really hard to implement well! A random reward is one that the user is not expecting and should probably have no reason to expect. For instance, a badge for their forty-second achievement in a system. There is no obvious reason for it but done with a little Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy humour, it may make someone smile at least! Read More ...

Anxiety – What it feels like when I have an Anxiety Attack

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Anxiety 1553509277 Anxiety 8211 What it feels like when I have an Anxiety Attack

Something very different today.

I have suffered from anxiety and depression for as long as I can remember. This video is an attempt to demonstrate what it is like when “the voices in your head” start to get too loud. I have worked with my daughter, who also suffers from anxiety, to try and produce something that matches our experiences. The feeling of being useless or worthless and helpless can be overwhelming.

You need headphones for this to be in any way effective. I am looking to build a game based on this video. Is there anyone out there who would be willing to build a very short game in unity for free based on this? Read More ...

The Perception of Fairness

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Fairness 1552486027 The Perception of Fairness

Coin Master. Have you played it? I have. It’s currently the top grossing game on mobiles. If you have not played it, it’s a fruit/slot machine. You put virtual money in, spin the reels and possibly win more money. You then use that money to build a series of villages, upgrading parts of one village until the whole thing is completed, then move on to the next one. You can also ruin friendships by attacking peoples villages, knocking their development back and costing them virtual money. It is a phenomenon, with a staggeringly well thought out social media presence and gameplay that is essentially addictive. I don’t say that about games usually, but this is pure addictive, gambling-based button pressing. But it is simple, relaxing and pleasing on the eye – so I play it. There is probably a whole blog peice there to be written actually! Read More ...

Introduction to Gamification Part 6: The User Journey

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Intro to Gamification Part 6 Introduction to Gamification Part 6 The User Journey

In the last chapter, we looked at goals and feedback. To follow on from this, I wanted to look at how you should plan feedback and rewards, based on the user’s expectations. However, to start, we need to look at the User Journey, which is a chapter on its own!

What is a User Journey?

In our world, the user journey is the series of steps that a user takes whilst engaged with your solutions. I break it down into four key stages. Discovery, OnBoarding, Immersion and Mastery/Replay. Ok, so that is more like 4 1/2 steps… Read More ...