Katie DobruseMarch 27, 2013

TC 830: Serious Game Analysis

• Budget: $500-$5,000• Team size: 3• Sponsoring organization: iFred

(International Foundation for Research & Education on Depression)– Not clear whether iFred provided funding

beforehand.

Audience/Serious Goals• People without depression: gain greater

understanding and compassion for those with depression

• People with depression: see that they’re not alone

Gameplay• Simple point-and-click interface • Several story tracks• Mimics depression’s ability to rob you of choice– Displays options it does not allow you to select

• Deliberately feels increasingly monotonous• No clear immediate goal– Like depression, feels aimless

Demo

“As soon as you think about the work that awaits you at home you can feel the panic creeping in from the back of your brain, unbidden. All you can think about is how incredibly far behind you are, and the amount of work seems nothing less than insurmountable. 

…You want to sit down and work but the mere thought of trying to work sends your stress levels flying; more than anything you feel suddenly and absolutely exhausted, and feel a strong desire to simply hide in bed.”

“Do you...

1. Order some food, grab a drink, and hunker down for a night of work. 2. Reluctantly sit down at your desk and try and make yourself do something3: Turn on the TV, telling yourself you just need a quick half hour to unwind from work4: Crawl into bed. You're so stressed and overwhelmed you couldn't possibly accomplish anything anyways.”

Choices (or lack thereof)

“…your ever-increasing fear that your relationship is becoming one-sided weighs more and more heavily on you. You feel more than ever like a burden or a ward to her, and it's virtually impossible for you to see what value you could possibly offer to her in return…

What do you do?

1: You know despite the bad times, your girlfriend sincerely loves you. Relationships are a 2-way street, and you resolve to always be there for her like she has been for you.2: Tell Alex how important she is to you and enjoy your evening. 3: Ask Alex if she's happy with your relationship.4: Don't say anything; you're already worried about her being upset with you.”

Stats

As much as you like the idea of trying to get work done tonight, the thought of the amount of catching up you have to do instantly freezes you up. The longer you stare at your computer, the higher your stress levels rise, until you're on the verge of a full blown panic attack. Not even wandering into the living room to try and watch TV relaxes you. You soon succumb to the mental and physical exhaustion and crawl into bed, making a point to close your laptop before you turn the light out. You lay in bed for some time feeling disappointed in your own inability to be productive before finally passing out.

You awake in the morning from a sleep that was far from restful. In fact, it seems impossible, but it's as though you're more tired than you were when you fell asleep last night.

Even though you love your family, you really feel like they don't know you at all sometimes and this makes them exhausting to be around on nights like this. You wish you could tell them what you are feeling. That sometimes it feels like you're lost in the woods, and that if you were to drop dead in your apartment the world wouldn't notice. You want to make her understand that more often than not, you feel like an alien, like there isn't anywhere in this world that feels like a place where you belong, and you have no idea how to fix it or what to do. You wish you could find the words so they would understand you, but you end up feeling like an outsider instead.

Your entire apartment feels claustrophobic, as though you're being choked by how isolated you feel, how trapped you feel just being here with yourself. You can't stand to be here any longer, so you grab your coat and just start walking. If you take a walk and get some air, maybe you can get away from the crushing feeling in your chest.

You walk for longer than anticipated, headphones on and blaring a favorite track. Before you know it, you've walked over a mile. The entire time your thoughts dart from personal failure to personal failure, and you feel like you're trying to get away from yourself.

As you were leaving work tonight, a group of coworkers asked if you wanted to join them for drinks. Feeling antisocial and put on the spot, you declined. You have a habit of doing this - you're often so convinced that you are weird and terrible and that any invitation to hang out will end in disappointment for those inviting you. You never feel like you know how to act in group outings, and you feel like a total creep since it seems to come so naturally to anyone who isn't you. You find yourself petrified of breaking some unknown social rule that you don't often go out.

Ouroboros Magic Circle of Serious Game Design

Player-Player Interactions

Rules

Mechanics (Actions or Procedures)

Resources

Conflict or Challenge

Characters

Premise or Story

System Dynamics

PlayerExperience

Outcomes(serious goals)

Copyright Carrie Heeter, 2013

GOALS

ENVIRONMENTAL COMPONENTS

FORMAL COMPONENTS

Player Goals

Designer’s Serious Goals

End State (Game

Outcomes)

GAMING CONTEXT

Pre-Game Context

During Game

Context

Post-Game Context

Relation to Real Life

Game World or Board

IMMERSION

going into an environment different from one's usualenvironment by physical means or by use of one's imagination

FUN CARD

PROBLEM SOLVING

finding solutions to problematicsituations that require thought

FUN CARDFUN CARD

LOVE

strong affection toward, love, lust, or caring forsomebody (real or virtual, human or alien or pet)

DISCOVERY

finding something that wasn't known before

FUN CARD

LEARNING

increasing your understanding of or knowledge about the real world

FUN CARD

THEORY CARD

INTRINSIC MOTIVATION

Playing or learning because the content or game is inherently interesting to the player/learner

THEORY CARD

ACCOMODATION

When new information somehow contradicts or conflicts with prior knowledge, revising world view to fit the new data

THEORY CARD

CREDIBILITY

Factors such as appearance, dress, personal grooming, eye contact and tone of voice can influence the credibility of a source (or NPC).

THEORY CARD

CAPTOLOGY

To be persuasive, link to a real organization, highlight your expertise, avoid errors, look professional, be organized, etc.

THEORY CARD

PROCEDURAL RHETORIC

Carefully design system dynamics to convey your learning content or message embodied in the game.

THEORY CARD

ROLE TAKING

Having players experience a situation and perspective in the game can be educational and persuasive.

THEORY CARD

PRESENCE

Factors such as media richness, immersion and interactivity can heighten the feeling of presence in a game.

THEORY CARD

INTERACTIVITYPlayers need to understand what actions are possible, and to experience immediate and expected responsiveness when they take an action.

Gems

• Credibility• Immersion

Anti-gems

• Hard to target two such different audiences

• Music is hit-or-miss