Page Views for 2014 posts

1) Defining gamification – what do people really think?

Posted on April 16, 2014As many of you know, I recently took exception to a particular definition of gamification that was doing the rounds. However, the positive effect was to make me think about what it really means and also started to make me wonder what other people think of it. So, I asked them – I did a… More… Read More ...

3 C’s to reduce negative uncertainty

December 17, 2014 by Andrzej Marczewski

Uncertain 1418824595 3 C 8217 s to reduce negative uncertainty

I have spoken about mystery and the like in the past and you would be forgiven for thinking that uncertainty sits in a similar space. The difference is that mystery or surprise are designed and deliberate.

TL:TR?

Defining Uncertainty

In this instance I am defining uncertainty as “The lack of certainty. A state of having limited knowledge where it is impossible to exactly describe the existing state, a future outcome, or more than one possible outcome.” ¹

Uncertainty can be both negative and positive. As with mystery, sometime snot knowing all the details leads to a healthy curiosity and motivates you into “opening the box” (though that didn’t work out so well for Pandora…). There has be research done on how uncertainty can actually boost motivation as well. A paper called “The Motivating Uncertainty Effect” ² This study showed that if people were given a limited amount of information about the reward they would receive, it could actually boost motivation. Read More ...

7 Rules for Gamification

December 10, 2014 by Andrzej Marczewski

I just thought as I had not written a post for a few days (researching for a couple of good ones!), I would put up my 7 rules for gamification.

Be sure that adding gamification adds benefit for the end users.

Extrinsic rewards (points, prizes etc) can engage over short periods such as onboarding / enrol and enthuse phases.

Intrinsic motivation is essential for long term engagement and if you are looking for quality and creativity over quantity.

Be open about what data is collected and why. Trust is essential.

Define clear goals.

Define and collect metrics.

Be flexible and adapt as user needs and behaviours change.

5 tips for good Gamification I learned from designing games.

December 1, 2014 by Andrzej Marczewski

Gamification often takes and claims inspiration from game design. One of my side hobbies is making the occasional game, as well as spending the last seven years reviewing games for my site yars.co.uk. I thought I would just put a few gamification ideas into context based around my personal knowledge of games and game design. I am y no means an expert, but I hope you will find it interesting.

Tl;TR?

First up, points. I have made games with point systems and I have made games without. Generally I use the points as a way to represent progression and skill – ie, the higher the score, the further your skills have progressed. This is intrinsic on its own, it is a way for the individual player to see how they are doing and if they are improving. This only works if the points reset each time, that way the player can easily see that if they score higher next time – they have improved. Cumulative points don’t allow you to do this, they just show how many points you have collected over time, which is a little less useful. You could consider a personal leaderboard, that just shows the player their scores over time for an exercise- thus easily showing them their improvement. Read More ...

Is it gamification if….?

November 20, 2014 by Andrzej Marczewski

This is a question I get asked all the time. Is it gamification if x,y or z. Depending on my mood and their question, I answer a little differently at first but always end the same way. Is it taking something that is not a game and making it more game like in some way? If it is, then you could call it gamification – but you are likely to get people complain one way or the other!

As you may or may not know, I have spent a great deal of time trying to organise my thoughts on this and define gamificaiton, which is how I settled on Game Thinking. This is my umbrella term that covers everything from making interfaces look a little more “gamey”, to making full fledged games. Read More ...