Are you really sure? Maybe are you forgetting something?!

Now I understand what are the fundamental characteristics of a Serious Game! Fun and Flow!

Center for Studies in Communication Sciences

The usual pundit!

A serious game is a game in which education (in its various forms) is the primary goal, rather than pure entertainment. Serious Games = Serious Goals

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The first step to build a Serious Game is to understand what is the specific target that we want to reach through a

Serious Game

The second step is to understand learning and training needs of the target group of the game

To understand what learning needs are, you can make preliminary investigations to users.

In practical terms you may use:1) focus groups

2) individual interviews

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The third step is that target group’s needs have to be translated into

the educational goals of the Serious Game.

EDUCATIONAL GOALS …..seems

boring!

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When you begin to think about a Serious Game, start with the learning objectives that you want students to achieve.

Once you are clear about the learning goals, think about the types of activities that you would undertake in order to meet those goals.

Then think about how might these types of activities might be embedded within a game – this is the point where you can be creative and brainstorm different ways in which these activities could be modified or embedded within a game forma.

Nicola Whitton

Think that educational goals can be more fun than it sounds!

I give you some suggestions!

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Once you have some idea of the types of gaming activities that would be appropriate to meet the learning objectives, you will have a basis for reassessing your requirements and evaluating the appropriateness of your game.

Undertaking this kind of mapping exercise will give you a good idea, before you start to look for develop an appropriate game,

of which types of game activities and interactions could be appropriate for your specific learning situation.

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A key challenge when designing a game for learning is ensuring that the goals within the game support the learning objectives and do not detract from them.

I can’t understand, make me an example?

If in a game it is quicker to progress by random clicking than by actually engaging with the game, then the

game’s goals may be easily achieved but there will be little learning taking

place.

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On the other hand, if a game is designed in such a way that progress necessitates engagement with the intended learning

objectives then it is much more likely to be a successful learning tool!!

OK...now I understand!

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What a branching story is?

Once you have defined targets, educational goals, and activities consistent with the goals you're ready for the next step… build the branching story.

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In a Serious Game construction you should give the player multiple possible paths. This allows you to respect the diversity of viewpoints and the presence of degrees of freedom that every player has in making its move.

The architecture of a Serious Games should allow recipients to have more alternative options for each move, leaving them the opportunity and responsibility to choose a particular answer over another.

The training plan: the fact that players each time have to choose and to decide the responses is very motivating because it increases their interest and personal involvement while maintaining a high level of attentional resources during the task execution.

Each turning point of the story is a challenge, requiring the selection between different lines of conduct to be more effective.

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Also the feedback represents an important moment of reflection for the promotion of the

cognitive and emotional resources of the subjects, because it is an opportunity for critical

analysis of its experience and for acquiring new knowledge.

I know it ... Feedback can take a variety of

forms.

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You can give the player a final overall feedback which must be sufficiently detailed to give the player a chance to understand what behaviours or choices have contributed to achieving the ultimate objective and what not and why.

You may decide to give the player the possibility to monitor at all times his/her performance as it is assessed during the game and how he is progressing towards the ultimate goal.

You can give the player a chance to understand what behaviours are positive or negative depending on changes in context, giving him, however, a global evaluation only at the end of the game.

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- Subject matter is the UN mission in Rwanda

- Pax Warrior was built with the notion that the best and most useful learning experiences are those that motivate and engage us.

-The Pax Warrior target is 14-24 years-old students attending high school and early university.

- The function and aesthetics of the game has been designed and tested for this particular target

Andreas Ua'Siaghail

Sean Hopen

Pax Warrior is a good example of Serious Game

Pax Warrior has been created as an "Interactive Documentary“, that incorporate also decision-based simulation and collaborative learning tools.

Making an "Interactive Documentary" that involve experiential simulations and collaborative learning tools needs some careful handling with regards to the delineation between these modes.

Interactors need to know if they are in the fictive environment - a first person experience or in a third person environment such as the research area where the information has the documentary authority of history.

While questioning information clearly adds to one's media literacy, issues of authentication and veracity present special challenges to the user experience design.

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The Game gives to players a clear question to respond and different options dynamically loaded.

What is available for the player depends on his/her last decisions.

Default position shows all questions for quick viewing

There is an Invitation to choose - move mouse into position to click- will invoke the drill down

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The last player choice [and the combination of all others before] give him/her this outcome:

• Can you live with this outcome?• Each image is a thumbnail for a short video

• That ticker at bottom never stops. How do you deal with the information fog of war?• Note the State of Nation section at left is available here as well as in decision screens .

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For more information about Pax Warrior:

http://www.paxwarrior.com/home/experience.php

For a playable demo version of Pax Warrior:

http://www.resolvelabs.com/projects/FierceLight/BellFund.php

Andreas Ua'Siaghail

Sean Hopen

Pax Warrior is a good example of Serious Game