Gamestorming, not Brainstorming

UX4Good May 4, 2012

#gamestorming

Brynn Evansgplus.to/brynntwitter.com/brynn

Hi, I’m Brynn Evans

The Bookamzn.to/GamestormingBook

My “Cheat Sheet”bit.ly/GamestormingGuide

gogamestorm.com@davegray@macgeo@sunnibrown

Poster Sessionfor ENVISIONING

Before / After Process System

Start, Stop, Continuefor TAKING ACTION

1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8

for IDEATION6-8-5 sketching

6-8-5 sketching

1 2 3 4

5 6 7 86-8-5 sketching: gogamestorm.com/?p=688

6-8-5 sketching

1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8

Object of play:A generative game to come up with as many ideas as possible

How to play:(1) Create a grid of 6–8 boxes(2) Set timer for 5 minutes(3) Sketch silently, goal is to create 6–8 sketches(4) After 5 minutes, share ideas with rest of the group

6-8-5 sketching1 2 3 4

5 6 7 8

Goal:To find a jazz show to attend tonight

3 Considerations:• Will be a mobile app

• Shows need to be marked as open / private / full / etc.

• Display events to the user

Games for ideationBrainwriting (p. 82)includes everyone in evolving an idea (silent brainstorming, followed by collaborative building on ideas), all done in silence

3-12-3 (p. 78)good for generating & developing lots of ideas in only 1 hour

Post-ups (p.19, 69)to generate a lot of ideas; one idea per post-it.

Party Invitations improve the onboarding process of a product or servicegogamestorm.com/?p=297

(Page numbers reference the Gamestorming Book. See bit.ly/GamestormingGuide for more)

Poster Session

Poster Session: Gamestorming p.114

Poster SessionObject of play:To create a compelling image that summarize a challenge or topic for further discussion**

How to play:(A) Each person creates 1 poster

(B) Or...people start with small individual posters. Then share with a group; discuss important ideas, build upon others ideas. Create 1 poster per group (20-MINS)

** Poster has to be mostly visual** Poster has to be self-explanatory

Photos by: flickr.com/photos/abovethefold

Photos by: flickr.com/photos/abovethefold

Before & AfterDescribe “why” someone should care in terms of drawing the today and tomorrow of an idea

SystemDescribe the “what” of an idea in terms of its parts and their relationships

ProcessDescribe the “how” of an idea in terms of a sequence of events

Games for envisioningDesign the box (p. 161)teams imagine the package for an idea in order to make decisions about important features & other aspects of their vision that are difficult to articulate

Cover Story (p. 87)to think expansively around an ideal future state

Storyboard (p. 71)players use a storyboard format to tell a story about an experience, how to solve a problem, etc.

Bodystorming (p. 59)using improv or “play acting” to feel out what might work in the real world

Elevator pitch (p.166)uses madlibs to come up with a short, compelling description of the problem you’re trying to solve

(Page numbers reference the Gamestorming Book. See bit.ly/GamestormingGuide for more)

Start, Stop, Continue

START continue...STOP• daily standups• Friday “Flash” Report

•weekly status meetings

•tracking bugs & builds with email

• prioritized buglist

• lessons learned at milestones

Start, Stop, Continue: Gamestorming p.249

Start, Stop, Continue

START continue...STOP• daily standups• Friday “Flash” Report

•weekly status meetings

•tracking bugs & builds with email

• prioritized buglist

• lessons learned at milestones

Object of play:A closing game to come up with next steps

How to play:(Start) What are the things we need to START doing?

(Stop) What are we currently doing that we should STOP?

(Continue) What works today and we should CONTINUE?

Games for decision makingChallenge Cards (p. 158)used to identify and think through potential challenges and pitfalls of a product

Plus/Delta (p. 246)generate constructive feedback by focusing on what what positive or repeatable about an activity, and what you would change about the activity

Impact & Effort Matrix (p. 241)possible actions are mapped out on a 2x2 grid based on: effort required to implement & potential impact of an idea

$100 Test (p.232)uses the concept of cash to help prioritize a list

(Page numbers reference the Gamestorming Book. See bit.ly/GamestormingGuide for more)