The fourth video in my series of tutorials (finally!!)
This one is just a short (10 minute) look at points and badges in gamified systems and how to make some use of them. Not all that different from my Points and Badges: Not Totally Evil blog post, but also talks about balancing and best use case.
Enjoy!
Note, when I am talking about user types, I am referring to my classification user types found here! Since I released the User Types Hexad, I speak less about the extrinsic group outside of calling them Players. To help;
Consumer=Player Achiever.
Self Seeker=Player Philanthropist.
Networkers=Player Socialiser.
Exploiter=Player Free Spirit.
Status in the realms of gamification is a funny thing. It is something that we all agree is important, but seem divided on its nature. Some talk about it as an intrinsic motivator others extrinsic.
This is a long post for me, so get a cup of tea now!
One of the main things that I have found whilst research and writing about Gamification, is that the terms and the language we use don’t always seem to fit what were actually doing. As gamification matures, so to should the language that we use to discuss it. One term that seems to get particularly abused, which we have borrowed from game design, is Game Mechanics. This all came from various discussions I had been having with people in the games industry. All of them told me that they felt that most people in gamification are getting this (and more) wrong.
I spoke about rewards and reward schedules a couple of weeks ago, now I want to look at feedback. If I am honest, this will repeat ideas I have mentioned before, but is should give a little more meat and context.
Feedback comes in many forms, not all of them as obvious as we may think. It is also vital to any gamified system that feedback exists. It helps user keep track of how they are progressing, how they are “doing” within the system. One of the complaints about the “real” world is that feedback is often very slow. End of year reviews, report cards, midterm exams. In the game world, we are used to constant and instant feedback. Collect something and you are notified immediate. Complete a level and you are told, gain experience and you are notified. All of this happens straight away, no waiting around months and months to understand how you have done. In call of duty, you don’t have to wait until the end of the month to find out how you have performed in the last 20 matches. You are told constantly during the match and they you are given a summary of achievements at the end.
Anyone who has read a few of my blogs will, by now, be under the impression that I am not the biggest fan of rewards. Well, that is not entirely how I feel. Those that have read earlier blogs may remember something I said – “Rewards should recognise achievement, not be the achievement”. I also found myself saying in an email “Gamification at the moment is often nothing more than an attempt to illicit Pavlovian responses to external stimuli”. I know, how up myself does that sound – but it’s true. The way many people are using rewards are as a way to encourage people to do things – like giving a dog a biscuit for rolling over on command