Week 4 questions

I definitely remember playing The Incredible Machine game when I was younger, that was fun. Buckman has that labeled as constructivism. I also played a bit of Tonka as kid which maybe would be constructionism? But I don’t know if I’m taking that too literally as a category. I’m big puzzle person now so I think maybe the Incredible Machine had more of a lasting effect on me.

Ian Bogosts argues that gamification is mostly “bullshit” because it takes superficial elements of games like points, badges, and leaderboards and applies them to non-game contexts without actually making those experiences more meaningful or engaging. He believes this reduces games to manipulative reward systems used to influence behavior, rather than embracing what makes games expressive, creative, or culturally valuable. In his view, gamification often masks weak design or corporate goals rather than improving the experience itself. I don’t know if i believe gamification itself is actual bullshit, I do think the need to turn lots of life and self-care things into games is maybe an indication of a larger societal issue that should be looked at but I think it can be useful. I have experienced gamification outside of the classroom with like Duolingo, RunZombies!, or Finch. As someone with ADHD I think I tend to follow along with apps like that for a limited time but if i get too busy or distracted I can fall off the game wagon very easily.

A serious game is a game designed primarily for a purpose other than entertainment like education, training, health, or social awareness while still using real game mechanics to keep players engaged and learning through play. They aren’t “chocolate covered broccoli” because, as Farber explains, they aren’t supposed to hide boring content under a layer of fun; instead, good serious games should integrate learning and gameplay together so the experience itself is actually engaging. The idea is that if the design is done well, you don’t feel like you’re being “forced” to learn something.