Category: Game Design Studio 2

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Playtest Notes

Andrews Game

What was the most frustrating moment or aspect of the game? The most frustrating aspect is that the game goes very slow. Its pretty much that you play for 10 minutes and nobody makes any progress.

Was there anything I wanted to do but couldnt? At some points I wanted to cheat and move my piece forward.

What would I change? I would add in spaces on the board that benefit each color in a different way to get to the center faster. I would also maybe consider using two different die. One for the direction and the other for the amount you move.

What is the games message? Not 100% sure because the game does not have a name.

How did it make me feel? Bored and frustrated

Describe the game in three words? Slow, directional, Colorful

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Playtest notes

Bad Advice

Whats Frustrating? Not really frustrating at all, just a little confusing with the order of how to play.

Was there anything you wanted to do but couldnt? Not really

What would I change or add? I honestly love the bad advice part of the game the most because I think its really funny. I wish you can do more about that.

Games message? If I had to guess it would be positive and negative ways to deal with mental health.

How did it make me feel? It made me feel pretty relaxed. I thought it was a funny and laid back game.

Three words to describe the game? Fun, informative, supportive

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Game Design 2

(2.12) Serious Games

Discussion: Train, Crosser & La Migra, Ludoztil, Oregon Trail, Last Resort

Train (Brenda Romero)

Train is impactful because it keeps its context hidden until the end. The mechanics are straightforward and focus on moving pieces efficiently, but the reveal reframes the entire experience. It demonstrates how games can involve players directly in systems rather than simply explaining them. The lesson is conveyed through participation instead of dialogue, and that discomfort becomes the central learning experience.

Crosser & La Migra

Both games simulate border crossing and the pressures of immigration. What stands out is how procedural rules express vulnerability. Randomness, restricted movement, and pursuit mechanics create tension and stress. Rather than explaining immigration systems abstractly, these games simulate constraint and risk, allowing players to feel instability and fear firsthand.

Ludoztil

Ludoztil critiques the manipulation embedded in gamification systems. By satirizing reward structures, it reveals how points and incentives shape behavior even when players are aware they are being influenced. This connects directly to Bogost’s argument that gamification often prioritizes shallow motivation over meaningful engagement.

Oregon Trail

Oregon Trail remains one of the earliest examples of serious gaming. It teaches through consequence, using disease, weather, and scarcity to illustrate the realities of westward expansion. The learning model relies heavily on repetition and feedback, reinforcing behaviorist learning principles through trial and error.

Last Resort

Last Resort addresses homelessness and economic instability. What makes it effective is the absence of easy solutions. It highlights systemic barriers rather than individual failure, showing how serious games can expose structural issues instead of reinforcing personal blame.

Overall Reflection

Across all of these examples, systems communicate meaning more effectively than lectures. Players learn by experiencing constraint, uncertainty, and moral tension.

Play Reflection: Crossing the Bridge and Observance

Crossing the Bridge

This game centers on ethical decision making. It does not reward efficiency or optimization. Instead, it forces players to confront the consequences of their choices. The discomfort created by those decisions becomes the learning moment. Reflection occurs after action rather than during gameplay optimization.

Observance

Observance relies on ambiguity and environmental interpretation. It encourages attentiveness and emotional awareness rather than traditional goal completion. Without clear objectives, the experience feels less like a challenge and more like an immersive reflection.

Combined Takeaway

Both games demonstrate that serious games prioritize reflection over reward systems. The emotional or intellectual impact often happens after the play session ends.

Prototype Concept: The Last Hunt

Core Concept

The Last Hunt is a survival-focused serious game inspired by Appalachian folklore. A small hunting party becomes stranded after signs of a Wendigo attack during winter. As resources diminish, the main threat becomes fear, mistrust, and the decisions players make to keep the group alive.

Player Role

The player acts as the group’s decision-maker, balancing survival needs with social stability.

Prototype Mechanics (Paper Version)

Players track four core resources:

  • Food
  • Warmth
  • Trust
  • Fear

Each round includes:

  1. Resource Phase — supplies decrease and environmental conditions worsen.
  2. Event Phase — cards introduce challenges such as storms, disappearances, or strange tracks.
  3. Decision Phase — players choose responses like rationing food, holding a campfire talk, hiding bad news, or honoring the dead.
  4. Consequence Phase — decisions create long-term effects on group trust and fear.

Deaths are significant and introduce ethical choices around corpse management, such as burial, abandonment, or using resources for survival. These choices affect morale and trust.

Learning Objectives

The game explores:

  • Group decision making under stress
  • Survival ethics and scarcity
  • Fear and social cohesion
  • How leadership choices shape group dynamics

The Wendigo serves as both a folkloric threat and a symbolic pressure that reflects the group’s psychological state.

The Last Shift
A simulation of emergency room triage focused on ethical resource allocation and time pressure.

Witness Reports
Players analyze conflicting cryptid sightings to explore misinformation, bias, and evidence evaluation.

Signal in the Pines
A narrative game in which players respond to rural distress signals and must decide how to act under uncertainty.

Cryptid Conservation Agency
Players manage environmental preservation efforts for endangered mythical creatures, balancing public perception and ecological sustainability.

Archive of the Unseen
Players curate fading folklore and decide which cultural stories are preserved or forgotten, exploring how history is shaped.

Each concept uses systems to examine themes such as ethics, media literacy, environmental stewardship, and cultural memory.

Reading Responses

Learning Games and Learning Theory

Oregon Trail aligns with behaviorism because players learn through reinforcement and repeated feedback loops of success and failure.

Minecraft Education Edition reflects constructivism since players build, experiment, and discover solutions through exploration.

Collaborative simulation games align with social constructivism because knowledge develops through communication and shared problem solving.

Among these, constructivist approaches feel the most effective because players actively construct understanding instead of responding to rewards.

Is Gamification Bullshit

Bogost argues that gamification reduces games to points, badges, and superficial incentives, stripping away depth and transforming engagement into manipulation.

I partially agree. Gamification can encourage short term behavior, but without meaningful systems it becomes shallow.

Examples outside class include fitness apps that track streaks, corporate training platforms that award badges, and productivity tools that gamify tasks. These systems often lose effectiveness once novelty fades because they lack intrinsic motivation.

What Is a Serious Game and Why It Is Not Chocolate Covered Broccoli

A serious game is designed primarily for learning, awareness, or reflection, using gameplay mechanics to communicate meaning.

Farber argues that serious games are not chocolate covered broccoli because the learning is embedded within the mechanics. Players do not pause the game for instruction. Instead, the interaction itself creates understanding. When designed well, the system becomes the lesson.

Final Reflection

This week reinforced that serious games rely on systems, constraints, and player agency to generate meaningful learning. The strongest examples do not preach. They simulate. My revised prototype, Cryptid Commune, applies this approach by using folklore aesthetics to explore leadership, belief, and social influence through interactive systems.

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Question Set Week 2

  • What advergames have you played? Did they influence a purchase outside of the game? I mean i have played tons of games that ARE advertisements for the games themselves and they have never influenced me to get the game – I have also played games like Pepsi Man for other products and no they generally do not influence me
  • Why do the advergames ”tooth protector” and “escape” work? What makes ”chase the chuckwagon” and “shark bait” fail? According to Bogost, it is how well the game integrates the message of the game into the actual mechanics which make the games run. In the last two games, the gameplay doesn’t have to do with what the product actual is or does so the message falls flat
  • What does volvo’s “drive for life” accomplish? It forces the player to experience Volvo’s motto – instead of speed like most racing/car games, the game mechanics enforce “driving for life” by enforcing safety, safe speeds and awareness. It makes the player live the motto
  • What company used in-advergame advertising: Massive Incorporated
  • What was one of the first home-console advergames and what beverage was it for? Pepsi Invaders – which was for Coca-Cola as a dig at their competitor
  • What makes “the toilet training” game sophisticated and do you agree? It is “sophisticated” because of the values and management skills that are engrained in the rules of the game – it teaches something and allows users to experience a structured, manageable process of parenthood duties. I think I mostly agree – the subject matter makes it slightly less so but I haven’t actually played the game so I would have to see if Bogost’s justification is correct
  • What do advergames and anti-advergames have in common, and what principles do they share? Bogost argues they have quite a lot in common actually. Similar mechanics, which are intended for different purposes, but often act similarly. They also both are trying to persuade people to do, or not do, something. This is a key component and biggest principle they follow to say they have things in common
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Podcast idea

Out of the ones i viewed on the website I would love to do either of the Plague Inc games. Simply because it is a game I have played before and enjoy playing it with my friends.

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Serious Game Ideas Week 4

  1. Mind Matters (Monopoly-Style Mental Health Game)
  • Goal: Stay mentally balanced, not rich
  • Win/Lose: Cooperative win if players avoid burnout; group loss if too many burn out
  • Money – Energy Points: Used for all actions
  • Properties – Life Areas: School, Work, Friends, Sleep, Hobbies
  • Railroads – Support Systems: Therapy, Family, Friends
  • Utilities – Coping Skills: Exercise, Mindfulness, Journaling
  • Houses/Hotels – Habits & Routines: Help energy, overbuilding causes burnout
  • Chance/Community Chest – Stressors & Support
  • Jail – Burnout: Pause, rest, or accept help to recover
  • Message: Balance matters, burnout is real, and asking for help is part of the game
  1. Panic Attack! (Exploding Kittens-Style Mental Health Card Game)
  • Type: Fast party card game (2-6 players, 10-15 min)
  • Goal: Avoid panic spirals and survive the deck
  • Panic Cards: Knock you out unless defused
  • Coping Cards: Breathing, Grounding, Text a Friend (cancel Panic)
  • Stress Cards: Force draws, skips, shuffles
  • Avoidance Cards: Skip, See the Future, Shuffle
  • Twist:
    • Coping cards are limited
    • Some Panic cards require help from another player
  • Win: Last player standing or cooperative survival
  • Message: Panic is sudden, coping takes effort, support matters
  1. Unhelpful Advice – (Based on Bad Thearapist but better bc that game is not good)
  • Type: Party card game | 3-8 players | 15-20 minutes
  • Goal: Win rounds by matching the worst advice to serious mental health prompts
  • Prompt Cards: Real struggles (anxiety, burnout, imposter syndrome, loneliness)
  • Advice Cards: Wildly unhelpful, tone-deaf, or cliché responses
  • Judge Role: One player picks the “most realistically awful” advice
  • Scoring: Judge awards a point to the winning advice
  • Twist:
    • Occasional Reality Check Cards pause the game to share what actual helpful support looks like
    • Optional debrief at the end of rounds
  • Tone: Dark humor with boundaries (no slurs, no glamorizing harm)
  • Message: Bad advice is common, listening matters, and mental health isn’t one-size-fits-all
  1. Dear Me – Therapy Edition (Journaling Mental Health Game)
  • Setting: Individual or group therapy, school counseling
  • Players: 1–6 or solo
  • Goal: Guided self-reflection and emotional regulation
  • Levels:
    • Grounding – identify emotions and body sensations
    • Reflection – explore patterns and self-talk
    • Growth – values, strengths, future goals
  • Journaling:
    • Timed writing (2-5 minutes per prompt)
    • Writing required, sharing optional
    • Skipping is allowed without explanation
  • Therapist Cards:
    • Pause (breathing/grounding)
    • Reframe (thought challenges)
    • Strengths (coping skills)
  • Win Condition: None
  • Message: Self-awareness, consent, and healing over performance
  1. Spoon Buffet (Sushi Go – Style Mental Health Game)
  • Type: Drafting/set-building card game | 2-5 players | 15-20 min
  • Goal: Manage your “spoons” (energy) each day and avoid burnout
  • Card Types:
    • Task Cards – Work, School, Chores (cost spoons)
    • Self-Care Cards – Sleep, Exercise, Mindfulness (restore spoons)
    • Support Cards – Friends, Therapy, Family (protect or boost spoons)
    • Stress Cards – Anxiety, Overcommitment, Unexpected Events (drain spoons unless countered)
  • Mechanics:
    • Draft one card per round, pass the rest (like Sushi Go!)
    • Plan to avoid running out of spoons
    • Some Stress cards require help from other players
  • Scoring / Win:
    • Points for ending with the most spoons preserved
    • Penalties for “spoon debt” (overexertion)
    • Optional cooperative mode: group wins by balancing total spoons
  • Message:
    • Mental health is finite; energy management matters
    • Self-care restores energy; support prevents burnout
    • Recognizing limits is key; overextending has consequences
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Read and ?s

  1. What learning games have you played? can you categorize them by learning theory: behaviorism, constructivism, or social nature? if you played more than one which was the most effective?
    • Learning games can be divided along behaviorist, “drill and practice” models such as Math Blaster or Logical Journey of the Zoombinis; constructivism and constructionism, focusing on construction and creativity in games such as The Incredible Machine or LEGO Mindstorms; and the social dimension of learning, as seen in communities such as MOOSE Crossing. The best learning games are those that avoid “chocolate-dipped broccoli,” or “gamification” of uninteresting activities by embedding them in something else fun, and instead make learning itself inherently engaging by using mechanisms such as decision-making and role-playing. “Shallow gamification” has been dismissed as “exploitationware,” but “Serious Games” such as Nightmare: Malaria are effective because they integrate their message as part of gameplay.
  2. Is gamification bullshit? What is Ian Bogost’s argument, and do you agree? Where have you encountered it outside of class, and what was your experience?
    • Ian Bogost has perhaps crystallized this argument most strongly, stating that gamification is essentially marketing nonsense and referring to it as “exploitationware” since essentially what gamification does is reduce the rich complexity of games into simple, repetitive elements and then proceeds to sell a simple guide on how to do business with such simple techniques. This, of course, is also the concern expressed by most researchers of gamification: an “unwholesome” design described as being “chocolate-covered broccoli” – taking an underlying difficult learning experience and adding a little bit of fun to drown out the process. If we look outside the classroom, we see one end of the spectrum focusing on trivial point systems, while the other end is focused on Serious Games, which have a tangible impact, like Nightmare: Malaria, which incorporates actual decision-making processes, or health-related apps like Zombies, Run! and SuperBetter, which integrate a purposeful goal into the actual game. If we look at the business world, we again see this spectrum, ranging from the recruitment game America’s Army, to team building game Everest Manager.
  3. What is a serious game, and why aren’t they chocolate-covered broccoli?
    • A serious game, on the other hand, is a piece of gaming created to deliver a specific, purposeful message. Serious games are commonly created for learning or training, with K-12 learners, health professionals, and corporate employees as their common audience. They are different from edutainment because they make learners deal with complex rules and accept feedback immediately within a specific setting, such as recruitment missions in America’s Army or STEM exploration in The Radix Endeavor. Thus, a serious game is not akin to a “chocolate-covered broccoli” game, a metaphor for edutainment whose core is boring, as opposed to its entertaining surface. Serious games, rather, make the process of learning enjoyable at its core. While initial edutainment like the first version of Math Blaster offers rewards for learning, such as shooting mini-games, serious games incorporate learning into essential mechanics of choice, problem-solving, role-playing, and others. A good example of this is the game Nightmare: Malaria, where the dark, intense gameplay, such as evading mosquitoes inside a girl’s bloodstream, is actually part of the game’s mechanics for delivering the danger of the disease. Unlike edutainment, a serious game does not try to avoid the core idea of learning but, by avoiding this, it attempts to make learners embrace what is being learned, not merely the reward for it.
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Mason Tosadori Week 4

Observance

  1. What made the experience fun or not?
    • The game was decently fun but there are a few tweaks I would change. The game is very chance based. I believe the americans are really strong and its super easy to catch the people on team MEX. The mex need to reveal themselves to find the churches, which easily gets them caught, and then they have 2 chances to find the green card, if they dont find it they have to send their people to actually stand on the A row and search space by space. If they miss they reveal their location and will easily get caught, so you hav to find it really early on.
  2. What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?
    • The factor is to go and find the green card and save all your immigrants, or on the other hand stop all the immigrants from getting into america.
  3. Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?
    • The game is trying to get players to look at and understand whats going on at the border. Aliens want to sneak into America to get a better life while Americans are trying to keep the Aliens out. It shows what both parties have to go through, sneaking in and also trying to keep these people out.
  4. What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?
    • The games metaphor is symbolic of trying to get a better life while others try to keep them away from it. It resembles battle ship in game mechanics but the fact that your pieces directly interact with your opponents pieces is a different mechanic.
  5. How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?
    • The game makes me feel empathy for the immigrants trying to get into the country, but I understand how people can also have empathy for the workers who are doing their job and trying to keep people from sneaking into the states instead of coming in legally.
  6. Is the game an activist game? If so what does the game play advocate for?
    • I think the game is an activist game advocating for immagrants trying to get into the US. It shows their struggles and how dangerous and difficult it is just to try and be more successful in life.
  7. Describe the game in 3 sentences or in the form of a haiku
    • Team MEX tries to sneak, the americans catch them, away from better life

LAST RESORT

  1. What made the experience fun or not?
    • The game was fun, its a mix of chess but theres a whole new aspect with the civilians and having multiple ways to win. It gives room for alot of strategy while also having a message about 2 sides of war and how it effects innocent people.
  2. What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?
    • The motivation is to beat your opponent in battle while also keeping civilians safe in the crossfire. Its a 1v1 competitive game so that makes the competiton alot more direct compared to group played games.
  3. Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?
    • The game is persuasive in the sense of giving the players a deeper perspective of war. It shows how it can effect civilians and how people can get caught in the cross fire. It also gives the perspective of how civilians arent just on the sidelines, but a direct strategy that each side has to take into account.
  4. What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?
    • The games metaphor is symbolic, almost directly, of the perspective of innocent civilians in wars. The game mechanics focus on this by letting you kill and capture the civilians, giving the game a whole other loop off strategy and ways to win the game involvining civilians insetad of just killing your enemies pieces.
  5. How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?
    • I like the gameplay alot, theres alot of strategy and different moves to make, and because there are multiple win conditions you never know what your opponents goal might be. It is empathetic towards people effected by war who arent directly involved. It shows troops moving around them and even taking thei lives, showing the effects war has on people other than troops.
  6. Is the game an activist game? If so what does the game play advocate for?
    • The game seems like an antiwar kind of game. It shows the taking of lives with troops, but also being able to set of smaller bombs and a nuke which can take out most of the board shows the losses and spoils of war.
  7. Describe the game in 3 sentences or in the form of a haiku
    • 2 sides of a war, civilians in the way, decide how you win

What learning games have you played? Which learning theory do they fit? Which worked best?
I have played games like Kahoot and Duolingo. Kahoot and Duolingo mostly use rewards like points and streaks, which fits behaviorism because you get rewarded for correct answers. The games are competitive and have leader boards. Kahoot worked for me because it shows the whole class if you got the answer wrong, making me work harder to not embarss myself.

Is gamification “bullshit”? What is Bogost’s argument? Do you agree? Where have you seen it?
Ian Bogost says gamification is “bullshit” because it just adds points and badges to boring tasks. He thinks this does not make something truly fun or meaningful. It only tries to push people to work harder without changing the task itself. I have seen gamification in fitness apps and store rewards programs. It can be motivating at first, but it usually does not last, so I mostly agree with him.

What is a serious game, and why aren’t they “chocolate-covered broccoli”?
A serious game is a game made to teach or explore real-world topics. It is not just a boring lesson covered up to look fun. Learning happens through playing and making choices. This makes the experience feel more real and engaging.

5 Ideas for a serious game.

1. Student money manager
You play as a student who has to budget money for rent, food, and bills. You learn how to save and avoid debt.

2. Save the earth
You run a city and make choices about pollution and clean energy. Your decisions affect the environment and the people.

3. Fake New
You read news stories and decide if they are true or false. The game teaches how to spot fake news.

4. Stop the Virus
You try to control a disease in a town. You choose rules to keep people safe while keeping businesses open.

5. Life Choices
You play as someone facing challenges like poverty or disability. Your choices show how hard daily life can be.

I choose the game Gamer Girl for the podcast.

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Game Design 2 week 4 Reading homework

  • what learning games have you played? can you categorize them by the theory of learning types: behaviorism, constructivism, constructivism or social nature? if you played more than one which was the most effective? I have played learning games like Duolingo, Kahoot, Quizlet, Animal Jam, and a few others. Most of them I would say is behaviorism like Duolingo, Kahoot , and Quizlet because you get rewarded when a question is right, but punished if an answer is wrong. I would say Animal Jam and Minecraft are more social nature because you kind of make your own decisions , but you aren’t punished you just kind of learn from them. I think the most effective is Kahoot or Duolingo because they incorporate a bunch of fun games in order to learn the topic, and they make it easy to memorize.
  • is gamification bullshit, what is ian bogost’s argument and do you agree? where have you encountered it outside of class and what was your experience?Ian Bogost argues that gamification is a shallow imitation of games. It borrows surface features points, badges, leaderboards, but ignores what makes games meaningful: choice, systems, and consequences. To Bogost, gamification is often: Manipulative, Focused on compliance, not learning A way to make boring systems feel fun without changing them. I agree with him because at first, it feels motivating, but over time it becomes stressful or meaningless. The system hasn’t changed, only the wrapping has.
  • What is a serious game and why aren’t they chocolate covered broccoli? Matthew Farber argues that serious games don’t hide learning inside fun, they make learning the game itself. Their rules and systems express ideas, teach through experience, and let players feel real consequences. They aren’t chocolate-covered broccoli because the mechanics are the message, as seen in games like Papers, Please, This War of Mine, and Darfur is Dying, which teach by placing players inside the system rather than rewarding them for correct answers.

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Week 4 Questions

Observance

What made the experience fun or not?

The experience was fun because if you are the immigrants, you don’t know where your opponents players are and its the mystery of where the green card and the churches are. The game gets a lot easier once you find the green card so you can escape. If you are the boarder patrol, you get to choose where the green card is and the churches. You also have the opportunity to block the immigrants and do search formats that will help sweep them from the board.

What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?

The motivating factor for the immigrants is to find the green card to escape. The motivating factor for the search patrol is to find where the immigrants are and wipe them off the board.
Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?

Yes the game is persuasive because it is subtly trying to show you what the boarder is like in real life and is trying to influence your beliefs and social understandings.
What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?

It compares immigration to the game battleship. The mechanic that stands out is the search and hide characteristic of the game that reinforces the cat and mouse dynamic at the boarder.
How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?

The gameplay can feel uncomfortable and strategic rather than playful. It often creates empathy for immigrants because they are positioned as vulnerable and constantly under threat of being “found.” Depending on the role you play, it can also make you reflect on the system itself rather than just one side.
Is the game an activist game? If so what does the game play advocate for?

Yes it can be considered an activist or persuasive game. It advocates for critical reflection on U.S. border politics and immigration enforcement by exposing how the system reduces complex human experiences into tactical operations.
Describe the game in 3 sentences or in the form of a haiku.

Observance is a board game modeled after Battleship that explores immigration and border patrol. One player hides as immigrants while the other searches as border enforcement, creating a tense strategy gameplay. Through simple mechanics, the game critiques how border systems treat human movement like a tactical game.

5 new ideas:

  1. Concept:
    A workplace simulation game where players navigate a corporate environment over 10 in-game years.

Gameplay:
Players choose a character (with gender identity affecting how systems respond to them) and make decisions about speaking up in meetings, negotiating salary, reporting harassment, or balancing family expectations. The same choices produce different outcomes depending on the character’s gender.

Serious Purpose:
The game demonstrates wage gaps, bias in performance reviews, emotional labor expectations, and the “double bind” women often face (too assertive vs. not assertive enough).

Core Message:
Sexism is systemic, not just individual.

2. Concept:
A life-simulation game where players are randomly assigned a socioeconomic status at birth.

Gameplay:
Players make decisions about education, healthcare, housing, and employment, but available choices vary depending on starting income. Random events (medical emergencies, job loss, inheritance, networking opportunities) dramatically affect trajectories.

Serious Purpose:
Shows how structural inequality shapes life outcomes beyond “working hard.”

Core Mechanic:
Two players can play side by side and compare how different their opportunities are.

3. Concept:
A narrative-driven decision game about navigating everyday spaces (school, stores, job interviews, police encounters).

Gameplay:
Players experience branching storylines where microaggressions, profiling, or cultural assumptions affect outcomes. Dialogue choices influence trust, safety, and social standing.

Serious Purpose:
Encourages empathy by demonstrating how race shapes daily interactions in subtle and overt ways.

Core Message:
Bias operates both structurally and interpersonally.

4. Concept:
A strategy game where players run for local office in a politically divided town.

Gameplay:
Players must balance campaign promises, donor influence, public opinion, and personal values. Decisions affect approval ratings, media coverage, and policy outcomes.

Twist:
Accepting corporate donations may help you win but limits the policies you can realistically pass.

Serious Purpose:
Explores political compromise, corruption, and voter polarization.

Core Message:
Political systems shape what leaders can actually accomplish.

5. Concept:
A time-management and survival simulation about being a nontraditional adult college student.

Gameplay:
Players juggle coursework, a job, childcare, financial stress, and social isolation. Energy and time are limited resources. Unexpected events (sick child, overtime shifts, tuition hikes) force difficult trade-offs.

Serious Purpose:
Highlights barriers adult learners face that traditional students may not.

Core Message:
Higher education is not equally accessible for everyone.

Reading Questions:

what learning games have you played? can you categorize them by the theory of learning types: behaviorism, constructivism, constructivism or social nature? if you played more than one which was the most effective?

Behaviorism:

Duolingo – Uses streaks, points, levels, and instant feedback to reinforce correct answers.

Constructivism:

Minecraft – Players learn by building, experimenting, and solving spatial or logic problems.

Social Nature:

Among Us – Encourages communication, deduction, and social reasoning.

is gamification bullshit, what is ian bogost’s argument and do you agree? where have you encountered it outside of class and what was your experience?

Ian Bogost argues that gamification is “bullshit” because it often reduces games to superficial elements like points, badges, and leaderboards without capturing what actually makes games meaningful. He says companies use gamification as a marketing tool to manipulate behavior rather than create genuine engagement.

I partially agree because many gamified systems feel shallow and rely on extrinsic rewards, which can lose effectiveness over time. However, when thoughtfully designed, gamified systems can motivate participation, and they just shouldn’t replace meaningful design.

Ive encountered it in apps that aren’t game but have a point system like Starbucks or Sheetz.

What is a serious game and why aren’t they chocolate covered broccoli?

A serious game is a game designed primarily for education, training, activism, or social impact rather than pure entertainment. Examples include military simulations, health training games, and persuasive games like Observance. They are not “chocolate covered broccoli” when the gameplay itself meaningfully connects to the message. The phrase suggests disguising boring education with fun elements, but strong serious games integrate learning into the mechanics so that playing the game is the learning and not just sugar on top of a lecture.

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Game Reviews

Ames’ Game Last Resort

  1. What made the experience fun or not?
    1. The experience was fun because the game was calm but still required a lot of thinking. It kind of put me in a trance while playing, since I had to focus but didn’t feel stressed.
  2. What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?
    1. The main motivating factor is trying to get the civilians on your side. It makes you want to keep playing so you can improve your strategy and win them over.
  3. Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?
    1. I’m not really sure if the game is persuasive. It doesn’t clearly try to get you to do anything outside of the game.
  4. What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics standout?
    1. The game’s metaphor seems to be about strategy and opposing sides competing for influence. The mechanic that stood out the most was that each side had specific moves, which made gameplay more interesting and strategic.
  5. How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?
    1. The gameplay makes me feel calm, but also competitive at the same time. I feel the most empathy for the civilians because they are affected by the choices made by both sides.
  6. Is the game an activist game? If so what does the game play advocate for?
    1. I don’t think the game is an activist game. It might encourage players to think differently or more strategically.
  7. Describe the game in 3 sentences or in the form of a haiku.
    1. Critical Thinking
    2. Competition slowly builds
    3. Thought shapes how you play

Crossing the Bridge

  1. What made the experience fun or not?
    1. The experience was fun but challenging. It made you think a lot, which kept it engaging.
  2. What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?
    1. The motivating factor is trying to cross the bridge while understanding the rules and limitations placed on you.
  3. Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?
    1. Yes, because it makes you think about how people face obstacles in real life. Outside of the game, it encourages players to be more aware of challenges others may experience.
  4. What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics stand out?
    1. The bridge acts as a metaphor for obstacles people face. The mechanic that stands out most is how movement is restricted, which forces players to think carefully about their choices.
  5. How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?
    1. The gameplay makes me feel frustrated. It makes me feel empathy for people who have limited options.
  6. Is the game an activist game? If so, what does the gameplay advocate for?
    1. I think it can be considered an activist game because it raises awareness about inequality and obstacles. It advocates for understanding and empathy toward others’ experiences.
  7. Describe the game in three sentences or in the form of a haiku.
    1. Steps feel slow and hard
      Limits shape every movement
      Understanding grows

Observance: The Board Game

  1. What made the experience fun or not?
    1. The experience was interesting but not very fun. It was more serious and made you think carefully about your choices.
  2. What is the motivating factor to get or keep players playing?
    1. The motivating factor is wanting to understand the system better and see how your decisions affect the outcome. Players keep going to see if they can improve or change the results.
  3. Is the game persuasive, and what is it trying to get you to do outside of the game?
    1. Yes, the game is persuasive because it makes players think about how rules and authority affect people. Outside of the game, it encourages players to question systems and be more aware of power and control.
  4. What is the game’s metaphor and which of the game’s mechanics stand out?
    1. The game is a metaphor for being constantly watched. The mechanic that stands out most is the limited freedom and strict rules, which shape how the game is played.
  5. How does the gameplay make you feel? Who does the game make you feel empathy for?
    1. The gameplay made me feel tense and uncomfortable at times. It made me feel empathy for people who live under strict control or constant observation.
  6. Is the game an activist game? If so, what does the gameplay advocate for?
    1. Yes, because it raises awareness about surveillance. The game advocates for thinking critically about authority and personal freedom.
  7. Describe the game in three sentences or in the form of a haiku.
    1. Eyes are always there
       Rules decide what you can do
       Freedom feels distant
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Game design 2 week 4 Game ideas

Aleah Dudek

  1. Theme: Climate justice
    Mechanic: Economic simulation

Every player benefits from pollution at first, but emissions secretly accumulate and trigger disasters that hit the poorest players hardest.

2. Theme: Housing insecurity
Mechanic: Tile laying survival

Pets move through temporary homes as buildings disappear. You don’t control the world, only how long your animal can remain safe.

3. Theme: Forgotten deaths and systemic erasure
Mechanic: Hidden information and area control

Players move through a city where invisible ghosts represent unrecorded victims. Only by standing still can you see them, but doing so makes you vulnerable.

4. Theme: Climate change
Mechanic: Cooperative survival

The dragon’s fire represents rising heat and disasters. Players can fight it, but every attack makes it burn hotter.

5. Theme: Climate refugees
Mechanic: Tile erosion and migration

Rising tides wake the Kraken. Each round, parts of the ocean map sink, forcing fleets to flee while the monster grows.