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Amplifying applied game development and uptake

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Abstract and Figures

The established (digital) leisure game industry is historically one dominated by large international hardware vendors (e.g. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo), major publishers and supported by a complex network of development studios, distributors and retailers. New modes of digital distribution and development practice are challenging this business model and the leisure games industry landscape is one experiencing rapid change. The established (digital) leisure games industry, at least anecdotally, appears reluctant to participate actively in the applied games sector (Stewart et al., 2013). There are a number of potential explanations as to why this may indeed be the case including ; A concentration on large-scale consolidation of their (proprietary) platforms, content, entertainment brand and credibility which arguably could be weakened by association with the conflicting notion of purposefulness (in applied games) in market niches without clear business models or quantifiable returns on investment. In contrast, the applied games industry exhibits the characteristics of an emerging, immature industry namely: weak interconnectedness, limited knowledge exchange, an absence of harmonising standards, limited specialisations, limited division of labour and arguably insufficient evidence of the products efficacies (Stewart et al., 2013; Garcia Sanchez, 2013) and could, arguably, be characterised as a dysfunctional market. To test these assertions the Realising an Applied Gaming Ecosystem (RAGE) project will develop a number of self contained gaming assets to be actively employed in the creation of a number of applied games to be implemented and evaluated as regional pilots across a variety of European educational, training and vocational contexts. RAGE is a European Commission Horizon 2020 project with twenty (pan European) partners from industry, research and education with the aim of developing, transforming and enriching advanced technologies from the leisure games industry into self-contained gaming assets (i.e. solutions showing economic value potential) that could support a variety of stakeholders including teachers, students, and, significantly, game studios interested in developing applied games. RAGE will provide these assets together with a large quantity of high-quality knowledge resources through a self-sustainable Ecosystem, a social space that connects research, the gaming industries, intermediaries, education providers, policy makers and end-users in order to stimulate the development and application of applied games in educational, training and vocational contexts. The authors identify barriers (real and perceived) and opportunities facing stakeholders in engaging, exploring new emergent business models ,developing, establishing and sustaining an applied gaming eco system in Europe.
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Amplifying applied game development and uptake
Hollins Paul , Westera Wim, Manero Iglesias Borja The University of Bolton UK , The Open University of the
Netherlands, Netherlands, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain.
Paulanthonyhollins@googlemail.com
wim.westera@ou.nl
bmanero@ucm.es
Abstract :
The established (digital) leisure game industry is historically one dominated by large international hardware
vendors (e.g. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo), major publishers and supported by a complex network of
development studios, distributors and retailers. New modes of digital distribution and development practice are
challenging this business model and the leisure games industry landscape is one experiencing rapid change. The
established (digital) leisure games industry, at least anecdotally, appears reluctant to participate actively in the
applied games sector (Stewart et al., 2013). There are a number of potential explanations as to why this may
indeed be the case including ; A concentration on large-scale consolidation of their (proprietary) platforms,
content, entertainment brand and credibility which arguably could be weakened by association with the
conflicting notion of purposefulness (in applied games) in market niches without clear business models or
quantifiable returns on investment.
In contrast, the applied games industry exhibits the characteristics of an emerging, immature industry namely:
weak interconnectedness, limited knowledge exchange, an absence of harmonising standards, limited
specialisations, limited division of labour and arguably insufficient evidence of the products efficacies (Stewart et
al., 2013; Garcia Sanchez, 2013) and could, arguably, be characterised as a dysfunctional market. To test these
assertions the Realising an Applied Gaming Ecosystem (RAGE) project will develop a number of self contained
gaming assets to be actively employed in the creation of a number of applied games to be implemented and
evaluated as regional pilots across a variety of European educational, training and vocational contexts.
RAGE is a European Commission Horizon 2020 project with twenty (pan European) partners from industry,
research and education with the aim of developing, transforming and enriching advanced technologies from the
leisure games industry into self-contained gaming assets (i.e. solutions showing economic value potential) that
could support a variety of stakeholders including teachers, students, and, significantly, game studios interested in
developing applied games. RAGE will provide these assets together with a large quantity of high-quality
knowledge resources through a self-sustainable Ecosystem, a social space that connects research, the gaming
industries, intermediaries, education providers, policy makers and end-users in order to stimulate the
development and application of applied games in educational, training and vocational contexts.
The authors identify barriers (real and perceived) and opportunities facing stakeholders in engaging, exploring
new emergent business models ,developing, establishing and sustaining an applied gaming eco system in Europe.
Key Words : Applied Games ; Serious Games ; Game Assets ; Ecosystem ; Gamification
Introduction
For some time now games have been employed in education and training settings across a wide and varied range
of application domains including most notably and successfully in business and administration, the military, and
health care. Proponents have consistently highlighted the enormous potential of games in education and training
settings to stimulate engage and motivate (Prensky 2001) , in particular , disaffected learners. Critically digital
games have in the past been presented as the panacea for solving the many problems in schools and training sic
(cf. Gee, 2003; Quinn, 2005 ) .There is ,however, an increasing volume of research and validation evidence
available to support the notion that games can indeed be extremely effective tools for learning (Connolly 2012).
In parallel emerging digital technologies in design, production and distribution have enabled considerable cost
reductions in game development production and delivery. In an environment with reductions in costs married
with significantly increased capabilities one might have expected to experience substantial growth of the applied
games market. However, growth figures of the wider domain of game-based learning, including simulation-based
learning are estimated to be in the region of 3-4 % per year until 2017 (Adkins, 2013). In contrast, the leisure
games market is experiencing much higher growth which is forecast to continue over the coming years, to an
estimated 7 % per year (PWC, 2012). A number of explanations for the cause of this phenomenon in the applied
game industry and markets have been suggested. Firstly that , the applied games industry exhibits the
characteristics of an emerging, immature industry namely: weak interconnectedness, a very limited knowledge
exchange, an absence of harmonising standards, limited specialisations, limited division of labour and insufficient
evidence of the products efficacies (Stewart et al., 2013; Garcia Sanchez, 2013) and could, arguably, be
summarised, at present, as a dysfunctional market. There is, however, seemingly contradictory evidence to
suggest that the exponential social impact of the Leisure Games Industry is leading to a growing acceptance of
educational games as having an authentic and legitimate place in the digital game development industry (Hollins
& Whitton 2011 ). Paradoxically; this social impact could have a negative effect on the attraction of the applied
games industry to leisure game developers concerned with maintaining their perceived established brand
characteristics such as “coolness” , “edginess” or rebelliousness.
Secondly, the education and training market is widely characterised as intrinsically conservative and (highly) risk
averse. Over the years, various authors (Bates, 1995; Clarck and Estes, 1998; Westera, 2012) have criticised what
is perceived as a conservative culture in educational practice; one that is entrenched historically in the intuitive
and traditional pedagogic methods of the pre-medieval apprenticeship model, featuring an omniscient master
and a naive pupil. Bates (1995) goes further in critiquing the established organisational model of education itself
in the classroom and in teaching in presenting a scathing judgement on the role of teachers, who, he asserts,
rarely use any kind of design process and do not ground their work on validated , scientific evidence. Thirdly it is
suggested that there is a significant dichotomy between the established and emergent business models of the
leisure games industry and the emerging properties of the much less mature Applied gaming markets.
In this paper the authors will analyse these issues in the context of the RAGE project: Realising an Applied Games
Ecosystem. In essence the RAGE project is a technology-driven research and innovation project that makes
available accessible self-contained gaming assets (i.e. solutions showing economic value potential) that support
game studios in the development of applied games. These assets are made available together with substantial
accompanying high-quality knowledge resources through a self-sustainable Ecosystem The ecosystem is a social
space that connects a variety of stakeholders from the research, gaming industries, intermediaries, education
providers, policy makers and end-user communities.
European objectives and policies (H2020)
The RAGE project is situated and funded as part of the Horizon 2020 European Framework programme for
Research and Innovation . This programme is the largest EU research and innovation programme with an
investment of 80 billion euros available over the seven years of its intended life-cycle 2014 to the present day.
The intention of the programme is to stimulate economic growth through innovation and bring “good ideas” to
market quickly, ideas that address real needs by coupling science and innovation in order to boost the European
economy and competitiveness in global markets. The programme aims to couple Industry , in particular Small to
Medium Enterprises (SME) with academia , innovation blue sky thinking , in order to address real needs in effect
creating an innovation union. This activity is characterised by a series of research and innovation pillars namely;
excellent science, industrial leadership and investment in industries.
The Distinctions between the “established” Leisure Game industry and the Applied Games Industry
The authors assert there are significant distinctions between the Leisure and Applied gaming industries which can
be characterised in the following ways :
The leisure game industry :
Digital games have acquired extraordinary social relevance, becoming a highly significant media in modern
culture and life and constituting a massive industry with 155 million of users and $22.4 billion per year in the US
alone (ESA 2015). There has been a prolific rise in the number of game players of games in particular casual
gaming, over the last decade played by an ever increasingly broad demographic audience , in terms of geographic
location, age and of both genders over an increasing and varied number of technology platforms including
consoles, personal computers, hand held devices and significantly mobile telephony.
However, it seems that digital gaming industry has been primarily remained focused on the development of
entertainment products and services . Recent research undertaken by the Entertainment Software Association
(ESA 2015), provided data indicating that only small percentage ( 5%) of the games acquired (purchased) in the
United States were developed for educational purposes (Notwithstanding these commercial off the shelf (COTS)
games could conceivably have been applied within educational settings).
As suggested in the introduction, anecdotally at least, the established Leisure Games industry has thus far been
extremely reluctant to engage in the development of applied or serious games (Stewart 2013). There are a
number of real and perceived barriers to active participation by the digital game development industry in applied
and serious games markets. As indicated in the introduction of this paper there is a perceived lack of maturity of
the Applied Game Market in particular in respect of established business models or clear evidence of return on
investment of development costs. Whilst development costs through technology have reduced significantly for
some sectors of the market notably with the rise of the use of middleware and small scale App development over
the last decade in other segments such as console (proprietary platform technology) the “cost of success” in
terms of development, licensing and marketing has increased markedly. The risk and cost of entry to digital game
developers in new applied gaming markets is significant.
Leisure digital games product business models can be analysed vertically, or alternatively from concept to market
or horizontally (Williams 2002) into market segments. Games have been identified as “experience goods” where
quality is determined only through their consumption (Kerr 2006 ). Historically, in terms of vertical analysis game
development has been focussed on large scale, and time consuming two years of development, consolidating
proprietary platforms.
A cursory review of the value chain analysis of the the final price of a game a conventional “Commercial off the
shelf console boxed game” reveals contribution levels of the console manufacturer (Licensor) 10 % , the
Developer/publisher 20 %, the Distributor 6 % , the retailer 14% and finally the customer 50 % (Deutsche Bank
2002).
As discussed, alternatively the value chain can be analyzed horizontally into a number of different market
segments. (Williams 2002) divides this into three market segments consoles,handheld and PC’s and these into
market into percentage market shares whilst others including (Kerr 2006) ,in light of the emergent market
conditions of the time including convergence and , adopt a slightly different approach by taking the game
“genre” as the starting point; console games, “standard” PC games, Massive Multiplayer Role Playing Games
(MMORPG) ,and mini or casual games extending segmentation arguing that a platform based (Williams 2002)
approach is unsatisfactory given then the rapid changes to the market and players and emergence of new
platforms (and technologies) on a regular basis.
In what is entirely consistent with the evolution of other entertainment industries , such as the music, television
and hospitality industries, the ubiquitous effect of digital technology on established Leisure game business
models is becoming increasingly evident with the emergence and challenge of new digital distribution and
service models. Recent years has seen the establishment of major commercial entities such as Steam
offering
new cost effective channels to market with service support and active communities of engagement. Established
publishers and developers such as Electronic Arts (EA) have responded with the establishment of its proprietary
digital distribution platform Origin.
A Recent addition to the digital games distribution channels has emerged in
the form of Galaxy GOG offering games free of, the highly contentious, imposition of Digital Rights Management
(DRM). Galaxy potentially offers some guidelines as to the future evolution of business models . Models that
mark a transition from a product based to a service based ecology with foundations embedded within the
establishment of a Galaxy online community.
In a competitive and dynamic environment the associated risk of entry to new markets (Applied Games) for
digital Games Developers could, arguably ,be the
most significant barrier to entry.
The Applied game industry :
Applied Games; or at least the more established genre of Serious Games have historically exhibited low
production values and whilst there are authors (Whitton & Moseley 2012) that argue “the opportunity to create
bespoke fit for purpose computer games is beyond the technical capabilities and time limitations of teaching staff
and outside of the capability of most learning technology teams”
(P 138) and that effective games need games
expertise and that many, expensive, in house or designed for education games simply aren’t games. (Whitton &
Mosely 2012) advocate the value in a low tech approach in claiming production quality has little value in engaging
and motivating learners compared to pedagogically sound instructional design and playful approaches.
In direct contrast with commercial entertainment games which are designed to target a wide demographic
audience, applied games are usually oriented towards a narrow audience with very specific learning
characteristics. They incorporate strong instructional design and pedagogy , andragogy and heutagogy. For
example ; Unsurprisingly an applied game developed to support the teaching of geology to year four students
would be quite distinct in comparison to one designed for undergraduate or postgraduate students studying
within a university setting.
Further; applied game development is not only driven by the subject matter but , consistent with the leisure
gaming industry, by the intended targeted audience. When an applied game is not instructionally designed in an
appropriate and relevant way in terms of pedagogic structure , interface and learning outcomes for its intended
audience the result is usually a game that neither engages nor motivates students to play or more importantly
achieve their desired learning outcomes. This disjunct results in games that are incomparable with entertainment
games (Facer et al,2003; Kinzie & Joseph,2008). This could be further explanation as to why , from the large
number of educational games produced there have been few games that users ,or players have a preference for.
Recent research in respect of the effectiveness of applied games endorses this perspective but is inconsistent
(Hays 2005; Connolly et al, 2012; Ibanez et. al 2014), highlighting both games with very successful engagement
and learning outcomes and others equally where the engagement and learning outcomes have not met
expectations. Some authors (Michel D & Chen S 2006) argue that free of the conventional and established
business models of the Leisure game industry the applied or serious games industry allows game developers to
experiment with (vertical) business and distribution models that bypass the established retail publishing industry
and open up new revenue streams.
In contrast to the Leisure game industry in the applied Gaming Industry context quality is not merely
determined by consumption. Consistent with most educational interventions efficacy in the achievement of
desired pre-determined learning outcomes is the key performance measure and to demonstrate this through
evidence based data. Cooperation between these two industries could have an impact in improving applied
games quality, and then in achieving better learning outcomes. Applied games industry, because of its youth,
would certainly benefit from leisure industry know-how. Many errors that entertainment industry has made over
the past 40 years could not be repeated in applied games development.
Applied and Serious games are environments which can potentially support a broad variety of pedagogical
approaches including constructivist inquiry based and as didactic instructivist tools (Whitton & Hollins 2008) and
have the potential to provide rich streams of real time activity analytical data It should be noted however,,
learning and playing are inherently distinct concepts. While learning is readily associated with an obligation - even
forced by law - , homework, examinations, are a necessity of life, and a prerequisite for having a job, a salary and
a career, games are associated with play, joy, leisure and having fun. In his seminal book “Homo Ludens” Huizinga
(1950) describes play as a leisure activity, non-obligatory and fully free of any material goal or interest – no profit
can be gained from it. Play cannot be reinforced. Essentially, we are able to force children to go to school or to do
their homework, but - in contrast - it is impossible to force them to play. This conceptual conflict forces game
developers to deal with applied games and leisure games in different ways. Nevertheless learning and playing
share a common base, which is the human need of being challenged by difficult tasks. As Papert (1980) noted: the
best fun is “hard fun”. Applied games may offer the hard fun that we are looking for.
The RAGE project: addressing The key Challenges.
The RAGE project aims to address many of the deficiencies associated with the Business of applied gaming
highlighted within this paper with the aim of stimulating growth of the capabilities and markets within the
European Union and consistent with the objectives of the EC Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation progrmme .
Over a four year period the RAGE project will develop an accessible repository system for the curation of a
cluster of gaming assets. Initially the repository will house thirty six self contained reusable interoperable gaming
assets produced within the RAGE consortium , detail of the asset functions is provided in Figure 01 below; assets
that will facilitate the development of Applied games. An asset is described as specifically within the context of
the RAGE project as advanced game technology modules (software), enriched and transformed to support
applied games development. A RAGE asset is composed of one or more software components working together
on a dedicated task. That is, software components are the subordinate constituents of an asset.
Figure 01 Overview of RAGE gaming assets source RAGE proposal
The RAGE-project is founded upon a number of underlying principles that can be summarised as follows:
The project will provide an ecosystem with future proof features. Usage of large asset repositories have
an inclination to decline in use over an extended period of time with . RAGE will support the social
dimensions of stakeholder interaction in order to empower the collaborative process via the asset
repository.
creating and stimulating the Internet Value Chain. A knowledge and technology juncture point for
stakeholders available for those organisations on the applied gaming supply side (industry, universities,
), and for those organisations on the demand side (end-users, organizations,...).
By involving Universities as an integral part of the innovation process model; consistent with the Triple
Helix model (Leydesdorff & Etzkowitz, 1998),. of government , industry and education .A stated
objective of the RAGE project.
Enabling the disruptive power of small medium enterprises (SME). History demonstrates , small
companies in the leisure game industry have been at the forefront of innovation in the industry tackling
the development challenges . Larger developers, in general, are accommodated within an incremental
model which can restrict innovation and appetite for risk. The RAGE ecosystem aims to facilitate the
gaming creation process for small companies .
With the pilot implementations and case studies targeting employability skills specifically aligned with
the objectives of the European Commission Horizon 2020 ambitions. The applied games produced in
RAGE will address unemployment problems by creating accessible and usable tools that educate in
clearly targeted broad social and employment requirements ; that addresses the challenges of social
exclusion and improve retention in education or training . Research paradigms are combined to ensure
that innovative and usable assets are developed . The project will combine design-oriented (to make
them better), intervention-oriented (to make them work), domain-oriented (to make them matter) and
disciplinary research (to make them understandable).
By focusing on the ecosystem’s usability from the game developer perspective ; having access to
advanced gaming technologies should not be an issue in the future . By producing interoperable assets
both culturally and technologically , integration or communication within or with systems will be greatly
enhanced. RAGE is determined to create easy to use technology, by developing assets with pedagogical
guidance.
By addressing the Gaming priority areas. The asset components in RAGE will be: relevant for learning,
advanced, and work in games where there may be challenges.
The conceptual underpinning and Management Approach in RAGE
The transformations from leisures game technologies into applied gaming functions are indicated in Figure 02.
That Figure 02 summarizes what leisure industry techniques should be transformed to create engaging,
pedagogical and capable to analyzing applied games.
Figure 02. RAGE: Transforming leisure industry technologies to build applied games. Source: RAGE proposal.
The RAGE ecosystem aims to replicate the elegantly aesthetic structure and self regulating principles of a natural
ecological system providing an architecture for innovation hence the term “ecosystem”.
The conceptual underpinning and strategic approach to the project in particular developing an “ecosystem” , a
metaphor derived from the work of (Moore 1993) , is based on the premise that agents are embedded in a
competitive business environments that inherently must coevolve in developing symbiotic relationships with
other agents or stakeholders learners, customers, those in the supply chain and their competition . The concept is
well established within information technologies industries with perhaps silicon valley as the prime example of a
fully functional business ecosystem. Specific examples exist within the game development industry itself with
Unity asset store. A significant challenge and in equal measure ,strength, of the approach is to ensure that asset
development embraces both user and developer demand and equally is able to stimulate innovation and creative
embedding of the pedagogical requirements applied gaming in the specific use cases by the game development
community crossing the chasm
(Moore 1991) and diffusing innovation (Rogers 1962) recognising the significance
of cultural and social interaction in ensuring innovation activity and early adoption (early adopters) is embraced
by the domain pragmatists (early majority) which will ensure the sustainability of the ecosystem itself.
Figure03RepresentationoftheinterconnectionsoftheRAGEprojectworkpackagessourceRAGE
Proposal
Figure03isavisualrepresentationofthedesignoftheworkpackageandtheirassociatedinterconnections
essentiallyaseriesofdiscreteactivitiespressuredbymethod/projectalignmentandimpactanddissemination.
Conclusions
The RAGE project will develop entirely new and accessible supported services and interoperable assets with the
objective of bridging the chasm that currently exists between the Leisure and Applied Gaming industries. Barriers
, both real and perceived , the cost of entry and consequently risk will be significantly reduced. These assets,
when employed, will significantly reduce the cost of production of high quality applied games incorporating
hitherto complex pedagogic functions such as learning analytics, learner agency, assessment, and artificial
intelligence validating the quality and efficacy of theses assets by testing them in a series of large scale game
pilots. The RAGE project will support this development by undertaking extensive research in to the established
Leisure Game Industry and emerging Applied Gaming industry business models to provide leverage points for
developers engaged or seeking to engage in the Applied gaming market.
These assets and their ultimate location in a supporting ecosystem incorporating supported stakeholder demand
and supply side agency should ensure both scalability and sustainability with the aim of supporting an increasing
number of Leisure game developers active in the applied games market over and above the ten percentage
(Games Monitor 2012) of those companies participating at present.
TheRAGEprojectthusaimstoaccommodateandamplifytheAppliedGamemarketbymaking
availableadvancedandportabletechnologiesforappliedgamedevelopment.Theactualisationofthis
goeswithsubstantialchallenges.Atthetechnicallevelbigeffortsareneededtorealiseassetsthatare
bothfeasible,interoperable,usefulandusable.AlsothetechnicaldesignandintegrationtheEcosystem
asasocialspacealongwithanextendedrepositoryofgamingassetsandothergamingresourcesis
anythingbutstraightforward.Empiricalresearchisneededtovalidatethepedagogicalvalueofdesigned
assetsunderpracticalconditions,thatis,inexperimentsandrealworldpilotswithendusers.Ata
practicallevel,theRAGEprojectwillconnecttoawiderangeofAppliedGamesstakeholders,in
particulargameindustries,gamedevelopersandgameresearchersforcreatingacriticalmassin
AppliedGaming.Researchintobusinessmodelswillbeessentialforthefruitfuladoptionofnew
technologiesandmethodologies.Finally,theEcosystemitselfneedstogowithafeasiblemodelfor
sustainedexploitation
Acknowledgements
The Authors wish to acknowledge thesupport andreceipt of project funding fromthe European Union’s Horizon
2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 644187 and the support of their host
institutions The University of Bolton, The Open University of the Netherlands and Universidad Complutense de
Madrid, Spain.
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www.gog.com (Accessed May 2015)
... This paper aggregates these case studies to infer an interaction model candidate for standardization, joining other proposals to track LA observables in a standard way [17]. The standardization will also help the creation of supporting infrastructure and decrease the cost of applying LA (e.g., the cost of integrating the game in a VLE) [18]. ...
... The game also contains an xAPI viewer that allows the player to watch the statement being generated in real time. The Countrix game is connected to a Learning Analytics framework that contains an LRS [18]- [20]. When the player starts the game, the game requests an authorization to the LA framework to start sending xAPI statements. ...
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Learning Analytics is an emerging field focused on analyzing learners’ interactions with educational content. One of the key open issues in learning analytics is the standardization of the data collected. This is a particularly challenging issue in serious games, which generate a diverse range of data. This paper reviews the current state of learning analytics, data standards and serious games, studying how serious games are tracking the interactions from their players and the metrics that can be distilled from them. Based on this review, we propose an interaction model that establishes a basis for applying Learning Analytics into serious games. This paper then analyzes the current standards and specifications used in the field. Finally, it presents an implementation of the model with one of the most promising specifications: Experience API (xAPI). The Experience API relies on Communities of Practice developing profiles that cover different use cases in specific domains. This paper presents the Serious Games xAPI Profile: a profile developed to align with the most common use cases in the serious games domain. The profile is applied to a case study (a demo game), which explores the technical practicalities of standardizing data acquisition in serious games. In summary, the paper presents a new interaction model to track serious games and their implementation with the xAPI specification.
... There is increasing interest in serious games [10,33] due to their desirable features, especially their engaging and motivating characteristics [62]. However, there are a number of issues with using serious games which are not all fully addressed [62]. ...
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Playing provides many opportunities for learning as learners can take charge and make choices about their learning. However, since all play is not learning, it makes sense to combine learning and playing activities. In the area of teamwork training, despite the existence of a number of learning and leisure games, there is still room for a holistic approach to design such games. Thus, a game design is introduced based on well-proven and documented aspects of teamwork training. Based on this design, an initial proof of concept prototype is created and evaluated with 18 participants. The results are promising as the relationship between the prototype and teamwork was recognized, the prototypes training and playing potential was confirmed, and even its usability was rated as good. However, a more advanced prototype and artwork and a longer term study are required to further establish the training capabilities of the game design.
... The research methodology for this study is based on the Rapid Application Development model [17]. We performed an extensive needs assessment study (partially described in [18]), including asset developers, educators and game producers. We have identified the services to be supported through the repository and other related tools and, in parallel, designed the RAGE metadata model to fit the specified domain of reusable gaming components (RAGE software assets). ...
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This paper presents the architecture of the RAGE repository, which is a unique and dedicated infrastructure that provides access to a wide variety of advanced technology components for applied game development. The RAGE project, which is the principal Horizon2020 research and innovation project on applied gaming, develops up to three dozens of software components (RAGE software assets) that are reusable across a wide diversity of game engines, game platforms and programming languages. The RAGE repository provides storage space for assets and their artefacts and is designed as an asset life-cycle management system for defining, publishing, updating, searching and packaging for distribution of these assets. It will be embedded in a social platform for asset developers and other users. A dedicated Asset Repository Manager provides the main functionality of the repository and its integration with other systems. Tools supporting the Asset Manager are presented and discussed. When the RAGE repository is in full operation, applied game developers will be able to easily enhance the quality of their games by including selected advanced game software assets. Making available the RAGE repository system and its variety of software assets aims to enhance the coherence and decisiveness of the applied game industry.
... However, balance in the practice phase can be difficult to maintain: the designer wants the player to advance flawlessly while identifying their mistakes to obtain an accurate assessment of their initial knowledge level. In addition, the implementation result derived from the case study (i.e., a tracker and a basic server infrastructure for receiving and analysing traces) is currently being used in the RAGE European Project [21] as an important part of the infrastructure for assessing games. ...
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Although serious games are proven to serve as educational tools in many educational domains, there is a lack of reliable, automated and repeatable methodologies that measure their effectiveness: what do players know after playing serious games? Do they learn from them? Previous research shows that the vast majority of serious games are assessed by using questionnaires, which is in stark contrast to current trends in the video game industry. Commercial videogame developers have been learning from their players through Game Analytics for years via non-disruptive game tracking. In this paper, we propose a methodology for assessing serious game effectiveness based on non-disruptive in-game tracking. The methodology involves a design pattern that structures the delivery of educational goals through a game. This structure also allows one to infer learning outcomes for each individual player, which, when aggregated, determine the effectiveness of a serious game. We tested the methodology by having 320 students play a serious game. The proposed methodology allowed us to infer players’ learning outcomes, to assess the game effectiveness levels and to identify issues in the game design.
... The research methodology for this study is based on the Rapid Application Development model [14]. We performed an extensive needs assessment study [15], including asset developers, educators and game producers. We have identified the services to be supported through the repository and other related tools and, in parallel, designed the RAGE metadata model to fit the specified domain of reusable gaming components (RAGE software assets). ...
Conference Paper
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This paper describes the structural architecture of the RAGE repository, which is a unique and dedicated infrastructure that provides access to a wide variety of advanced technologies (RAGE software assets) for applied game development. These software assets are reusable across a wide diversity of game engines, game platforms and programming languages. The RAGE repository allows applied game developers and studios to search for software assets for inclusion in applied games. The repository is designed as an asset life-cycle management system for defining, publishing, updating, searching and packaging for distribution of these assets. The RAGE repository provides storage space for assets and their artefacts. It will be embedded in a social platform for networking among asset developers and other users. A dedicated Asset Repository Manager provides the main functionality of the repository and its integration with other systems. Tools supporting the Asset Manager are presented and discussed. When the RAGE repository is in full operation, applied game developers will be able to easily enhance the quality of their games by including advanced game technology assets.
... Schools, universities and corporations have been widely using it for learning and training; moreover they have been investing significant amounts of time and money for developing such alternative for traditional way of learning which is limited to classroom teaching [3]. Games have acquired an extensive fame in the last years with a massive industry of 155 million users and $22.4 billion per year in the US alone; however only small percentage (5%) of the games acquired in the US where developed for educational purposes [4]. Simulation is a great example on educational games that could be applied in the context of e-learning and has been defined as an "art and science of creating a representation of a process or system for the purpose of experimentation and evaluation" [5]. ...
Conference Paper
Different types of serious games have been used in elucidating computer science areas such as computer games, mobile games, Lego-based games, virtual worlds and web based games. Different evaluation techniques have been conducted like questionnaires, interviews, discussions and tests. Simulation have been widely used in computer science as a motivational and interactive learning tool. This paper aims to evaluate the possibility of successful implementation of simulation in computer programming modules. A framework is proposed to measure the impact of serious games on enhancing students understanding of key computer science concepts. Experiments will be held on the EEECS of Queen’s University Belfast students to test the framework and attain results.
... The primary objective of the RAGE project is to make available and accessible advanced software tools, methodologies, and expertise for serious games development and application [6]. Two main groups of stakeholders are targeted: game developers, on the one hand, and training providers and their learners, on the other hand. ...
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Digital games constitute a major emerging technology that is expected to enter mainstream educational use within a few years. The highly engaging and motivating character of such games bears great potential to support immersive, meaningful, and situated learning experiences. To seize this potential, meaningful quality and impact measurements are indispensible. Although there is a growing body of evidence on the efficacy of games for learning, evaluation is often poorly designed, incomplete, biased, if not entirely absent. Well-designed evaluations demonstrating the educational effect as well as the return on investment of serious games may foster broader adoption by educational institutions and training providers, and support the development of the serious game industry. The European project RAGE introduces a comprehensive and multi-perspective framework for serious game evaluation, which is presented in this paper.
Conference Paper
Serious games and simulations are called to fulfill an important role in education. They have already demonstrated effectiveness not only from the point of view of learning, but also as motivation tools. The current work examines the progress that, from the eMadrid Network, is taking place in this research area, together with the new research lines that are being opened.
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This document presents the RAGE evaluation methodology.It providesthe frameworkand accompanying guidelines for the evaluation and validation of the quality and effectiveness of the project outputs. Formative and summative evaluationsof the different RAGE technologies and their underlying methodologies–the assets, the Ecosystem, and the applied games–will be carried out on the basis of this common framework. Evaluation in RAGE addresses applied gaming in a holistic manner, taking into account the interests of different stakeholder groups. This means targetingthe effectiveness of the developed applied games, as well asevaluating the process of developing them and the benefit that the RAGE technologies affordthis process. The evaluation frameworktherefore constitutes a multi-perspective and holistic approach to systematicand comprehensive evaluation of applied gamestechnology. Based on the specificationof the evaluation objectives and questionsfor each strand of evaluation workand a review of existing methods,the evaluation approaches forRAGE areelaborated. This includes the identification of the plannedtypes of evaluation studies, the description of their proposed research designs and envisagedinstruments.An evaluation model integrating the differentevaluation tasksand their perspectives onevaluationis presented.The RAGE evaluation framework forms the basis for the analysis of the educational and cost effectiveness of the RAGE technologies, and for ensuring that they reflect the needs of theirstakeholders. The assets will be evaluated in respect of their software quality and theadded valuethey bring tothe game developmentprocess. In addition, the relevance and benefit that assets provide through their pedagogical functionality shall be evaluated from an educational viewpoint. The Ecosystem will be assessed in terms of users’ reactions to the system, quality of resources provided, the capability of attractingrelevant stakeholders, user contributions,and the added valuefor users. The evaluation ofeffectivenessof the gamesapplying the assets anddeveloped for the application scenarios will cover theanalysis of the games’effect on end-users’ perceptions, learning, skills acquisition and knowledge transfer. Unobtrusive data tracking and sensoring through RAGE assetswill complement more traditional instruments (such as questionnaires), thus providing a wide spectrum of evaluation methods capable of obtaining in-depth insights toplayers’ experiences.Furthermore, explorative and contextual cost-benefit analyses for game development and educational application of applied games will be undertaken foreach of the six use cases.This document also provides evaluation guidelines,whichserve as a manual forimplementingthe evaluation approachesinthe empirical work with users. In particular, theseguidelinesfocus onrelevant aspects of research data management to be taken into account whenconducting evaluation studies. General proceduresto be followedand tools and tips are described on how to implement requirements in terms of ethics, privacy, and open access in collecting, managing and sharing data in evaluation studies.The RAGE evaluation framework and guidelines arethe foundation for planning and organising scientifically sound, iterative,and mixed-method evaluations onthe project outcomes and thus, serveas the common reference point for all evaluation studies carried out in the project. The evaluation approachesoutlinedin this document will be translated into concrete evaluation procedures and materials for theindividual studies in thetwo main evaluation phases.The methods and outcomes of theseformative and summativeevaluation studies will be reported in detail in the RAGE evaluation reports(D8.3 in M33 and D8.4 in M47).The evaluation framework–in addition to itsuse in RAGE evaluation –aim atcontributing to evaluation methodologies in the context of applied and serious games, on a wider scope, and may be (re-)used in and adapted for other applied gaming projects. In this way, theevaluation approaches, outcomes and experiences of RAGE may serve as best practice for future applied game evaluations.
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The Second Conference on the Triple Helix of University-Industry-Government Relations focused on "the future location of research." In this report, the Triple Helix thesis is developed into a recursive model of how an overlay of communications operates on the underlying institutions. Market selections, innovative dynamics, and network controls provide different codes of communication at the global level. Local translations at the interfaces induce adaptation mechanisms in the institutional arrangements. While two dynamics tend to co-evolve into trajectories, a regime of transitions emerges when trajectories can be recombined. The emerging hyper-networks are expected to be in flux. Institutions can then be flexible in temporarily assuming roles of other partners. Niche management and human capital management become crucial.
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Gamification is the use of game design elements in non-game settings to engage participants and encourage desired behaviors. It has been identified as a promising technique to improve students’ engagement which could have a positive impact on learning. This study evaluated the learning effectiveness and engagement appeal of a gamified learning activity targeted at the learning of C-programming language. Furthermore, the study inquired into which gamified learning activities were more appealing to students. The study was conducted using the mixed-method sequential explanatory protocol. The data collected and analysed included logs, questionnaires, and pre- and post-tests. The results of the evaluation show positive effects on the engagement of students toward the gamified learning activities and a moderate improvement in learning outcomes. Students reported different motivations for continuing and stopping activities once they completed the mandatory assignment. The preferences for different gamified activities were also conditioned by academic milestones.
Book
This book talks about why, and how, to design 'serious games'.
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An exploration of the way videogames mount arguments and make expressive statements about the world that analyzes their unique persuasive power in terms of their computational properties. Videogames are an expressive medium, and a persuasive medium; they represent how real and imagined systems work, and they invite players to interact with those systems and form judgments about them. In this innovative analysis, Ian Bogost examines the way videogames mount arguments and influence players. Drawing on the 2,500-year history of rhetoric, the study of persuasive expression, Bogost analyzes rhetoric's unique function in software in general and videogames in particular. The field of media studies already analyzes visual rhetoric, the art of using imagery and visual representation persuasively. Bogost argues that videogames, thanks to their basic representational mode of procedurality (rule-based representations and interactions), open a new domain for persuasion; they realize a new form of rhetoric. Bogost calls this new form "procedural rhetoric," a type of rhetoric tied to the core affordances of computers: running processes and executing rule-based symbolic manipulation. He argues further that videogames have a unique persuasive power that goes beyond other forms of computational persuasion. Not only can videogames support existing social and cultural positions, but they can also disrupt and change these positions themselves, leading to potentially significant long-term social change. Bogost looks at three areas in which videogame persuasion has already taken form and shows considerable potential: politics, advertising, and learning.