Define your game before you gamify your system
Gamification is a hot trend in education technology, but unfortunately, many people think that adding points, badges, and leaderboards (PBLs) is gamification.
I’m here to tell you it is not.
Gamification means the process of gamifying something. To gamify is to make game-like. And what is a game?
There are many definitions of game, but the one I like to use is a simple formula:
rules + fun = game
There’s nothing about points, badges, or leaderboards in there. There’s not even anything about a win condition. Not all games have winners or losers, and quite a few games are co-op or collaborative rather than competitive.
Is rules+fun=game perfect? No. But does it cover a lot of games? Yes.
Let’s take a look at a few examples.
Running around on the playground or frolicking through a field is fun. Pure and simple fun. But there’s no rules, so those aren’t games.
Running away from a bear is not fun. And neither is just running on a treadmill. There are rules, however. You must run faster than the bear (or die). You must run for 30 minutes (or face the scorn of your doctor).
Playing tag combines the fun of running around on the playground with rules like someone is “it”, you can’t be touched by whoever is “it”, if you’re “it” you must say “Tag you’re it!” when you touch someone, and if you’re touched, you become “it”.
Are there winners and losers? I’m not so sure. I think a game of tag is over when everyone is exhausted or when the recess bell rings, not when someone wins. And I’m pretty sure most kids enjoy being “it” as much as being “not it”.
The points, badges, and leaderboards of the FitBit app can turn your treadmill slog into a game. Likewise, running a race at a track meet is a game. You can make running on a treadmill fun by listening to an audiobook or watching TV. But that doesn’t make it a game. There must be rules and systems to provide structure to turn running into a game. In some cases, those rules can turn the running-from-a-bear kind of running into fun, gamified running, as the Zombies, Run! game did.
That’s just running. The formula doesn’t stop there.
Dungeons & Dragons is a game. It’s essentially collaborative, improvisational, and creative storytelling, and players spend a lot of time making art and other related fun activities. D&D is a great example of a collaborative game that doesn’t have winners or losers. You can play a single game for decades. Does it have rules? Yes, several books’ worth. Is it fun? Absolutely.
What about learning? Let’s take math. Doing algebra homework? Lots of rules, not a lot of fun; therefore, not a game. Watching a movie like A Beautiful Mind or The Imitation Game? A lot of fun, and certainly related to math, but no rules; therefore not a game. Earning points and badges on Khan Academy or shooting numbers on Math Blaster? Definitely fun, definitely a lot of rules, and definitely games.
How about reading and writing? Reading a book? Fun, but no rules; not a game. Doing spelling worksheets? Rules, but no fun; not a game. Playing Scrabble or solving crossword puzzles? Rules and fun; therefore, games.
Even games like Calvinball follow this formula. The rules, however, may be so complex that we can’t even clearly articulate them. But there are still rules and it certainly does seem fun, so it is definitely a game.
You might be designing gamified corporate training, trying to get more engagement on an app with gamification, dreamscaping a new board or card game, or even writing a homebrew D&D campaign. In all cases, you need to apply core game design principles.
Now that you know what a game is, think about this when you’re trying to design your gamification system.
Ask yourself: What’s fun about this?
Ask yourself: What are the rules?
After the rules and the fun are clearly defined, you have a game.
That’s it.
Let me reiterate.
When you define the rules and the fun, you have a game.
Don’t try to add game elements to an existing non-game system and call it a game.
Avoid asking: How do I add points, badges, and leaderboards to this?
Avoid asking: How do I know who won?
It may be that your game does have winners and losers. It doesn’t have to. The Sims franchise doesn’t have a win condition. And it may be that your game does have points, badges, and/or leaderboards. Many successful games, including Rocket League and Fortnite, do use these features. But PBLs are just one tool, one possible rule, and not the definition of a game.
If you design your game, and there are PBLs or winners, that’s fine. But adding PBLs and winners to an existing system doesn’t make a game.
