One of the most characteristic things about today’s crop digital games is the grind. The grind, grindyness, or grinding aspect of some games is an aspect that most gamers have experienced at one time or another. But what does that mean? How do players experience it? How can designers and educators of games-based learning address the grind in our designs?
Read MoreGames and students have many things in common. One of the biggest commonalities are the type’s people they cater to. There will be the first year introductory courses that enroll mostly college freshmen. There are expansive games like Fortnite that appeal to competitive gamers. In between there are a plethora of different options available for many different types of students and gamers alike.
As a designer and instructor it’s best to understand our players and students. The better we understand them, the better able we are to cater to their needs and fully engage them in learning or play.
Read MoreBlack Mirror’s season five premiere Striking Vipers has an oddly coincidental connection to games and the “lusory agreement” the players follow when playing them.
Read MoreGames and simulations are two things that seem talked about in the same circles. Sometimes they even get misinterpreted for one another. They do share some of the same characteristics; but games and simulations are different from one another.
Read MoreFeedback is an important part of the learning process. Feedback is also really important for games to be engaging and fun. Feedback in education is based on providing the student with tangible information that they can use to improve their learning, knowledge grasp, or retention. Feedback in a game is provided to the player in order to viscerally show them the impact of their actions.. The two can be combined in order to both meet learners’ outcomes as well as provide some interesting and engaging feedback in a games-based learning environment.
Read MoreGamification is supposed to be fun. That’s why businesses, organizations and individuals use it on a daily basis. Why else would someone play games? But what are the ethics of gamification? What stops one business or organization from doing something nefarious? Is there a limit to gamification? Should it be up to academics, the government, or individuals to police how gamification is used?
Read MoreFormal game structures are the cornerstone on which game designers build their experiences. These structures shape what the designer intends to convey and what the player hopes to takeaway. Recognizing these formal structures helps your players define their experience.
Read MoreStructuring learning is one of the hardest things for an instructor to do. Sometimes that means reusing a syllabus. Other times you have to fit 16 weeks’ worth of content into 10 weeks. In either case, making sure that your students meet all course learning outcomes in your course’s time frame can be difficult.
Read MoreGames are currently being used for learning and education. Some of the most common practices are gamification, serious games, and games-based learning. Though that is not what many people see in practice. It seems that some of the most popular interpretations for learning games focus on scoreboards keeping track of players’ progress; playful feedback in activities; and tracking of students’ goals and achievements.
Read MoreThere are many types of games available for people to play and enjoy. One of the most familiar and heartwarming ones are narrative driven games. These are games where the player is the protagonist. They represent a singular avatar and experience the world and explore paths in the story together.
Read MoreSerious games are games. But they’ve been designed with an educational purpose. Serious games were not created to be played for amusement or entertainment.
Read MoreGames have goals. Classes have outcomes. Learning outcomes are a way for faculty, educators, and instructional designers to form and shape how a class will be structured. Game designers also form and shape the player’s experience through structures, loops, and other activities. Some may think that these two areas are completely separate. But when taking advantage of games-based learning, they become one and the same.
Read MoreMy colleagues have discussed that one of the biggest changes to education has been the creation of a learner-centric model for teaching. I find this kind funny as I believed that teaching had always been learner centric. Aren’t students the main benefactor? Isn’t that why we are all here? I can only come to that conclusion because I think about learning from a games-based mindset. Games are created for others to interact with, play, and enjoy. They aren’t for the designers. Is an un-played game still a game? If a class isn’t designed for students, then is it a class?
Read MoreGames are truly a powerful medium. They engage us and shape us. We play them, and in turn, they help inform how we interpret our own experiences. Games-based learning seeks to utilize all of these things. Game mechanics can engage users and help them solve problems. Although in games, those problems are contrived challenges. These challenges are structures that designers have added for players to succeed against. However, as gamers, designers, and educators, we can take away some lessons from games to help inform how we teach and learn.
Read MoreWhat is a game? What makes a game? Games have been part of human history for many years. But do we even know what we are playing? What makes them fun, interesting, unique, and engaging?
Read MoreThis is a question that never comes up in my presentations: “What makes games so appealing?” Usually people already know the answer. So, they don’t ask the question. Lots of people have different reasons why they play games: because they like the characters or the story. Because they want to escape from their everyday lives (if only for a few minutes). Some like the challenge that games provide while other people like socializing around games. But another reason that makes so appealing? It’s because they are constantly changing.
Read MoreSome in their life will embark on the doctoral journey; a journey which is challenging to say the least. I broke down my journey into the bare numbers that made up my doctoral degree in the hopes that others will use it to shape their own path. Enjoy!
Read More“I’d rather be lucky than good,” is a phrase that I’ve heard before. What it really means is that I’d rather benefit from chance than succeed through skill. In this post we’ll cover the difference between luck and skill; how both are similar; and how you can use it in student affairs practice.
Read MoreGamification, or putting game elements in non game settings, is a powerful tool. Higher education and student affairs can definitely benefit by practicing gamification. This post will describe how professionals can use Gamification in three ways: to enhance the student experience, to brand your institution, and to connect students to other services and programs they may benefit from.
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