This presentation was made to the Creative Performance Exchange on 3 May 2011, a group of creative thinkers and business leaders. The focus was on how business and organizations can learn from game awesomeness.

1. Game On! Marigo Raftopoulos
Designing for a playful future Strategic|Games|Lab

2. WARNING!
THIS SESSION HAS BEEN GAMIFIED!

3. Level 1: Why games are epic
Level 2: Game structure & design
Level 3: Gamification 101
Level 4: From engagement to immersion

4. Now - Let’s Play! This is your warm up Tutorial

5. What kind of player are you?
Type 1: Type 2: Type 3: Type 4:
I like to win points I like to solve I like to interact with I thrive on
and achievements puzzles, dig around other players during competition, either
(and receive and discover things games, especially in building or
rewards and in a game. Building building things destroying things. I'm
recognition for my characters and going together or going on in it for the sport, the
efforts). I like to beat on an adventure quests. I love it when strategy, controlling
the game and my within a great game people share things things and reading
opponents! story really keeps me in a game and form a moves. I play to win
going. close bond. and gain power.
Which statement best describes your usual style of playing games?

6. Bartle’s Player Types 1996
Type 4 Type 1
Type 3 Type 2
What kind of player are you? Wear your “badge” with
pride!

7. Your gamer profile
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8. Game Instructions:
• Form a team
• A Scavenger Hunt in three sections
• Find, name or do the activities in the time allowed
• You must complete at least two activities from each section
• The team with the highest score completed in the alloted time wins
•Play nice!

9. Now, please enter...
The Magic Circle
Homo Ludens (Man the Player), Johan Huizinga 1938

10. What have we learned?
• Well, we got to know each other a little better :P
• Discussion: What did you feel while playing?
• Game Genre: Scavenger hunt
• Game Mechanic: Collecting, points, social exchanges
• Game Dynamic: Leveling in 3 layers, progressively challenging
• Gamification: Using a scavenger hunt to learn about game tools & flow

11. Game On!
Level 1: Why games are epic

12. Humans are wired to
play
• Survival
• Race
• Competition
• Hunt
• Battle
• Social organisation
• Counting

13. Wired to game
• Dopamine release in mid-brain
region motivation to acquire
pleasure and rewards
• Complicated at the hormonal
level by testosterone and
cortisol release when
concentrating and competing
• Decision making takes place
elsewhere, in the prefrontal
cortex
• Wanting disassociated from

14. Senet (Passing): Egypt Circa 1550-1069BC

15. Senet was compelling
• Competitive
• Meaningful
• Epic journey
• Danger
• Urgency
• Entertaining

16. It’s all about
engagement
• Psychological, emotional and
social power of games
• Compelling, addictive and
intrinsically rewarding
• Disengagement is the fault of
the designer - not the player

17. Digital natives are our
next gen leaders
• An era from passive
consumption to immersive
experiences
• Institutions that are ‘backward
facing’ ignore the challenge of
tomorrow

18. Leaders of a brave
new world
• Pervasive
• Augmented
• Accessible
• Realtime
• Global
• An era of increasing complexity
and intractable problems
• Require a different skill set

19. The Gamer
Generation
• 10,000 hours of gameplay by
age 21*
• 3 billion hours per week online
• Mastery: leadership,
collaboration, strategy, virtual
teams
• Higher order skill development
• Expectations for immersive
experiences
*Jane McGonigal, Institute for the Future

20. Some perspective
• Social games (eg. Facebook
Top25)
• 76m active daily users
• World of Warcraft:
• 12 million monthly
subscriptions
• WOW wiki second largest
• Global games industry $60 billion
• Forecast growth $70 billion 2015

21. Games tap into Flow
• Autonomy*
• Mastery
• Purpose
• However our institutions are
designed for throughput and
efficiency
• Edward Castonova: We are
seeing a mass exodus to virtual
or synthetic worlds
* Mihali C and Dan Pink

22. What can business learn
from a game designer?
• Creating possibility spaces
(Structure & hierarchy)
• Creating experiences
(Processes & workflows)
• Enabling participation
(Systems & technology)
• Facilitating community
(Culture & values)
• Requires a mind shift

23. Are you ready to level up??
Take the quiz...

24. Level 2: Game structure & design

25. Designing the player journey
• Game Story - the soul of the game, the backbone of gameplay
• Game System - software, interface, visual, audio
• Game Mechanics - mechanisms or systems of incentives, feedback &
rewards to govern or drive behavior towards predictive outcomes - help
drive the journey, but is not the core experience
• Game Dynamics - evolution and patterns over time to make gameplay
more interesting and engaging. Balance skill and challenge to maintain
player motivation
• Game Theory - is a branch of mathematics!!

26. Game story: the narrative thread that binds events
together and drives the player forward towards
completion of the game. Doug Church
Interactive Storytelling: needs to define a significant
purpose, premise and quandaries in the story. It must
have an artistic quality. Andrew Glassner

27. Simple example of game http://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=Iz7ON4mp40Q
story: The Hero’s Journey

28. Fear and anger Taps into innate human fears

29. Imagery of death if you ignore
The problem is now yours the challenge

30. Okay, now its personal Really personal!

31. Mythological monsters There is no escape

32. To do nothing makes you Imagery of being outcast
weak & a coward

33. Heroes know what they have Imagery of a heavenly reward if
to do - save the world you take on this mission

34. Psychological symbols of deep
Greek mythology anyone? inner journeys & problem

35. Classic survival choices
Flight or fight? Heroes fight!
humans are hard wired for

36. Feedback loops keep you
Yeah, girls too!
going & keep you informed

37. You have an arsenal, toolkit & Choices, skills & strategy
selection - you’re good to go
real-time info at your disposal

38. The better you play, the You need better gear to do a
more challenging it gets better job, right?

39. Three key missions Keep it simple and personal

40. You are empowered. It’s all about YOU
You are the Hero.

41. What gamers say about game story

42. Are you ready to level up??
Design a game pitch!

43. Game Pitch [e.g. a game for social good?]
•The name of the game is __________________
•The story is about ________________________
•The target player is _______________________
•Who will be solving the problem of _______________
Later we will gamify your pitch with...
•Using secret game sauce of _______________,
_________________ and ___________________.

44. Level 3: Gamification 101

45. What is Gamification?
• Definition: a process of
incorporating gameplay elements
into non-gaming applications,
products and services
• improve user experience
• build engagement
• create customer loyalty
• Designing the player journey
• Gamification helps drive the
journey but it’s not the core

46. Entry level gamification
is mostly extrinsic
• Social
• Experiences
• Progression
• Status & success
• Currency & rewards
• Scarcity
• Design & interface
• Multi dimensional

47. How do we use it?
• Eight popular mechanics here
• Select combinations wisely
• Selection criteria based on:
• who is your customer?
• what is your objective?
• what is your budget?
• Gamification must be fit for
purpose

48. Social
• gaming as a social activity
• friends as part of the shared
experience
• technique: sense of belonging
• mechanic: add friends,
sharing, like/dislike, chat

49. Experiences
• gamify the everyday
• setting goals
• giving rewards
• technique: need for
recognition & accomplishment
• mechanic: badges, tokens,
trophies

50. Progression
• progression points, tracking
and feedback
• feedback loops to prompt
desired or target action
• technique: stimulus response
to feedback
• mechanic: progress bar,
points, prompts

51. Status & Success
• leader boards and points to
acknowledge desired actions
and behaviors
• stimulate competition and give
recognition
• technique: build status and
success, appeal to ego
• mechanics: leaderboards,
exclusive membership levels
and privileges, black/platinum/
gold cards

52. Currency & Rewards
• incentives based on time or
money
• built on points or tokens to
earn virtual currency
• redeem virtual currency for
virtual goods (in-game) or real
world goods or services
• technique: reward seeking
motivation
• mechanic: gold coins, real/
virtual currency

53. Create Scarcity
• creating artificial economies to
simulate scarcity in sought
after virtual or real goods
• technique: encouraging
purchases based on prestige
and feelings on ‘missing out’
on an offer
• mechanic: creation of a rare/
scarce products, icons,
symbols, sales promotions,
creating perceptions of value

54. Design & Interface
• creating the look and feel of a
game without inherent
gameplay elements
• technique: create altered or
renewed perceptions of
existing products or services
• mechanic: influence
perceptions through look/feel,
imagery and visual
stimulations

55. Multi Dimensional
• integrating cross-media
functionality and interest
• experience of the integration of
film, music, games and
merchandise
• gamified smartphone applications
& web services connected to real
world activities e.g health and
wellness
• technique: creating utility and
deeper social experiences
• Mechanic: utility, free, status

56. Please use gamification
responsibly
• Cognitive limitations:
• projection bias
• neglect of probability
• illusion of control
• fear of losses
• post purchase rationalisation
• Visual & perceptive limitations:
• selective attention bias
• pattern-seeking bias

57. Are you ready to level up??
“Gamify” your storyboard...

58. Game Pitch [e.g. a game for social good?]
•The name of the game is __________________
•The story is about ________________________
•The target player is _______________________
•Who will be solving the problem of _______________
Later we will gamify your pitch with...
•Using secret game sauce of _______________,
_________________ and ___________________.

59. Level 4: From engagement to immersion

60. Deep Dive into Flow:
Immersive Game Play
Immersion comes through
intrinsic motivation, triggers and
emotions
Key game dynamics incorporate
‘flow’ which are more complex
neurological drivers of behaviour
* Meaning
* Dynamic challenge
* Mastery
* Autonomy and control
* Create and build
* Surprise and discovery
* Randomness and luck

61. Workplaces
• Project management
• Change management
• Email management
• Organization design
• “The Target Game”
• Balance of Hard Fun, Easy
Fun, Serious Fun, People Fun
(Nicole Lazzaro)

62. Schools
• “WOW In Schools Campaign”
USA - Leadership, Teamwork,
Collaboration, Strategy,
Economics
• Mathletics & Spellodrome online
• Handheld Learning initiative UK
• Legacy of the failure of
‘edutainment’
• Kids have high expectations of
gameplay (& education has low
production budgets)

63. Healthcare
• Physical and cognitive therapy
• Exercise and movement - Wii
Fit, Kinect, Nike+, DanceGames
& ExerGames to maintain
motivation & focus
• Assistive technologies and
smart phone apps for
medication tracking
• “Mental Health Game”

64. Communities
• Playful community “street”
experiences
• Community building
• Games4Change Initiative
• Institute for the Future: World
Without Oil
• NYPL Scavenger Hunt
(reconnect with history, library
books)
• “Fun Theory”

65. Keep in mind
• Don’t bolt on - holistic design process
• A poor product/service/environment won’t be improved by gamification
• Game design is emergent - start slowly, carefully. Iterate. (10%design/
90% iteration)
• Beware of unintended consequences
• Design around intrinsic motivators - amplify meaning, autonomy,
mastery
• Focus on positive behaviors by making them more visible
• Simplicity

66. Game pitch

67. My son’s teacher said to me: “Well, not everyone
lives up to their potential...”
I believe that we cannot afford to entertain such
limiting belief systems

68. How will you extend
your magic circle?

69. Thank you for playing !
Marigo Raftopoulos
Mobile/Cell: +61 (0)412 183735
Skype: marigo.raftopoulos
Twitter:@Marigo
Blog: http://talesfromthecasbah.blogspot.com
Web: www.strategicgameslab.com