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2015 » Papers » Volume 2 » SERIOUS GAME MECHANICS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REUSE 1. SERIOUS GAME MECHANICS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REUSE Authors: Baalsrud Hauge Jannicke, Stefan Ioana Andreea, Stefan Antoniu, Lim Theo, Carvalho Maira, Louchart Sandy, Arnab Sylvester Volume 2 | DOI: 10.12753/2066-026X-15-094 | Pages: 19-27 | Download PDF | Abstract
The industry perspective to designing Serious Games (SG) for learning is largely a top-down approach, with the pedagogical design driven by two aspects - a client based or a flagship product. A client-based product has known learning objectives and outcomes. Flagship products or corporate brands have less defined learning objectives. Insofar, SG designers, mindful of the learning objectives, often follow a simple rule of thumb by asking where, on a scale of fun to simulation, fulfils the requirements of the game. This then determines the pedagogical approach implemented, implying a top-down approach to the game's design (e.g. affective learning might use role play, whereas procedural learning would tend towards repetitive game mechanics).
Consequently, there are no obvious direct links between the low-level game implementation aspects and high-level instructional design aspects of SGs. This suggests that pedagogical practices and game design aspects are two distinct elements of SG design. In fact, the transition between the instructional design and actual game design implementation represents the main gap in knowledge in SG design from both academic and industrial perspectives. Discussions with a number of Serious Game designers reveal that this transition lacks methodology and requires a leap of faith from a prospective customer in the ability of a SG developer to deliver a game that will achieve the desired learning outcomes. The notion of Serious Game Mechanics (SGM) is thus about conscious design decisions that holistically encapsulate the transitioning of learning practices into mechanical game-play elements for the sole purpose of play, fun and learning . In this context, defining SGMs as reusable assets supports reducing this gap and strengthens the game developer's arsenal. | Keywords
Serious Games, game mechanics, LM-GM mapping; design patterns |
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