Reto Wettach: Introduction

Sebastian Deterding: 9.5 Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Gamification

Frederik Maucksch & Matthias Wolff: The world is your level

Rilla Khaled: Participatory Approaches to Persuasive Technology

Felix Urban: Game aesthetics in audio culture

Listen to the selection of chip-based music that Felix played during the coffee break:

 
 

Ruttikorn Vuttikorn: New role of board game

Linda Breitlauch: Fun by Learning

Timm Kekeritz: EcoChallenge

Marc Hassenzahl: About transformational products or the aesthetic of friction

 
Abstract:

9.5 Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Gamification

“Gamification” is: hot, hyped, oversold, misunderstood, unavoidable, a buzzword, a question mark, an quick fix, a huge unfulfilled potential. In the past year, the notion of infusing digital products and services with game elements to make them more engaging has been stirring up the digital industries. Multiple vendors have sprung up that sell gamification as a software service, and ‘gamification gurus’ are beginning to litter the online airwaves like ‘social media experts’ in years before. Are points and badges mere indulgences for the faithful flock looking for redemption in loyalty programs? Or is there something deeper underneath, something worth salvaging?

In nine (and a half) theses, this talk will walk you through the precursors and parallels of gameful design, question trends and definitions, point to open questions and venues, and answer the question: What are we as interaction designers and researchers to make of this?

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Sebastian Deterding is a designer and researcher working on user experience, persuasive and gameful design, video games and the governance of new media. He is broadly interested in how code shapes conduct – and how to put that knowledge into practice. He publishes and speaks internationally on gameful design, persuasive technology, and the social contexts of games at venues such as CHI, DiGRA, Google, Gamescom, reboot, or Web Directions. His work has been covered by The Guardian, the LA Times, The New Scientist, and EDGE Magazine among others.

When not designing, Sebastian is a PhD researcher in Communication at the Research Center for Media and Communication, Hamburg University. His thesis looks into the use of game design elements to motivate behaviour in non-game contexts. He is also an affiliated researcher at the Hans Bredow Institute for Media Research in Hamburg, and works as an independent user experience designer.

He lives online at codingconduct.cc.
Below is a video of his talk “Getting Gamification Right”

 
Abstract:

Participatory Approaches to Persuasive Technology

In typical game design contexts, it’s commonplace practice for game designers to be given lots of creative freedom. They set the challenges, and we play them. But when we start considering non-game contexts in which entertainment is no longer the sole focal point, whether we’re talking about gamification, serious games, or persuasive technology more generally, designer-centric design practices stop making sense. In these contexts, if products don’t feel relevant to users, even if they are extremely well-designed, their chances of success – where success may be related to behaviour change, attitude change, education, or simply ongoing use and play – are already reduced. In this talk, I will explore how participatory design, a methodology drawn from human-computer interaction, can inform how we design serious games and gamification. I will also examine some of the challenges of bridging the participatory and game design gap.

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Rilla Khaled is an assistant professor at the IT University of Copenhagen, and has a PhD in Computer Science from the Victoria University of Wellington in New Zealand. Her research areas include persuasive design, cross-cultural psychology, serious and persuasive game design, and design methods.

You can find a list of Rilla’s publications at rillakhaled.com
Also, have a look at Rilla talking about serious games in the video below:

Rilla Khaled from Innovationlab on Vimeo.

 
Abstract:

Spaß durch Lernen – effektive mediendidaktische Konzepte für Serious Games

Ein Serious Game kann erwiesenermaßen erfolgreicher sein als andere Lernmaterialien, wenn es die Potenziale des Spiels und die Didaktik des transformativen Lernens miteinander in Einklang bringen kann. Dazu müssen zunächst die Vorteile der interaktiven, audiovisuellen Umgebung genutzt werden. Idealerweise soll das Spiel so gestaltet werden, dass die Zielgruppe und deren Ansprüche
hinsichtlich Zugang und Lernkurve beachtet werden. Schließlich sollte die idealerweise intrinsische Motivation aufrecht erhalten werden, damit der Lernerfolg nachhaltig wirken kann. Eine adäquate Vermittlung der didaktischen Inhalte können durch das Spiel dann vermittelt werden, wenn die Potenziale der Spielprinzipien gezielt darauf abgestimmt werden.

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Linda Breitlauch is professor of game design at the Mediadesign University in Düsseldorf. She has a degree in film and television scriptwriting from the Film & Television Academy (HFF) in Babelsberg and completed a PhD project that explored dramatic composition in computer games. Her research interests include the areas of storytelling, serious games, and dramatic composition.

You can find a list of Linda’s publications at li-bre.de

 
Abstract:

Transformationale Produkte oder Ästhetik der Reibung

Was wollen wir nicht alles tun! Weniger Fleisch essen (auch wegen der Tiere), weniger mit dem Auto fahren (auch wegen der Umwelt), weniger Arbeiten (auch für die Familie), mehr Lesen (besonders Fachliteratur), häufiger ins Konzert gehen (auch mal etwas Anspruchsvolleres) und häufiger Freunde treffen (besonders die, die wir schon lange nicht mehr gesehen haben). Stattdessen frönen wir der Leberkässemmel (35 Gramm Fett), fahren schwere Autos (meist deutlich mehr als 130 Gramm CO2), arbeiten zu viel (immer diese Überstunden), lesen Krimis, schauen Fern und sind meist zu müde für Freunde (wegen der Arbeit und dem fetten Essen).

All diese Situationen haben eine ähnliche Struktur: es gibt etwas, das wir langfristig für uns persönlich oder für die momentane und zukünftige Gesellschaft für gut und richtig halten, und etwas, das in der momentanen Situation leichter erreichbar ist oder sogar mehr Freude macht (denn wer würde ernsthaft anzweifeln, dass eine Leberkässemmel lecker ist). Es entsteht ein Konflikt zwischen zwei Handlungsalternativen, bei dem häufig die freudvollere Alternative gewinnt – auf Kosten der Umwelt, unserer Gesundheit oder unseres Wohlbefindens. Dementsprechend ist Willenskraft und Selbstkontrolle seit der Antike ein wichtiges Thema.

Interaktive Objekte verwickeln ihre Benutzer in Handlungen, und haben so – zumindest theoretisch – ein erhebliches Potential, Verhalten zu verändern. Aber wie müssen solch transformationale Objekte gestaltet werden? Haben Sie eine eigenes Ästhetik? Der Vortrag führt in das Problem der Selbstkontrolle ein und entwickelt mit Hilfe von Beispielen eine “Ästhetik der Reibung” – eine Gestaltungsphilosophie für Objekte, die Selbstkontrolle fördern und so ihre “Benutzer” verändern.

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Marc Hassenzahl is Professor at the Folkwang University in Essen and research manager at MediaCity, Åbo Akademi University, Vaasa, Finland. He is interested in the positive affective and motivational aspects of interactive technologies – in short: User Experience.

Marc bolgs at http://marc-hassenzahl.de/
To delve further into the topic please have a look here.

 
Abstract:

New role of board games

Things change rapidly in Asia.

• We change from agricultural to industrial countries
• We change from extended families to nuclear families
• We change from producing to consuming societies

These fast changes lead to unstructured systems and create a number of issues that range from environmental to social problems.
After working on these issues for several years, many NGOs realised that the best way to solve these problems is to work with children and to educate them in order to protect their culture, environment, and society. For years, I’ve been working with NGOs, designing toys and games to teach children how to reduce material and energy consumption, how to separate garbage, or even about their role as citizens in a democracy.

In this conference, I would like to share my experience of how I work with different organisations and how to create tools that serve the new needs of educators. And how much games have changed its role.

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Ruttikorn Vuttikorn is a fanatic toy designer and a founder of two companies. One is Club Creative, which designs a wide range of toys and children’s products. Another company, LeKnot, designs, produces and sells toys under the Toy Wizard and Paper Wizard brands. Besides
running the two companies, Ruttikorn has been working for charity organisations around the world to design toys for children with special needs and promoting quality play.

Her company websites can be found at www.club-creative.com and www.leknot.com
Her personal website is www.ruttikorn.com

 
Abstract:

Game aesthetics in audio culture

Since SID chips introduced the future of audio interfaces in computer technology, there was a high creative potential in composing music within this, so far, limited possibilities. Due to technical aspects, a particular aesthetic in composition as well as a unique sonority was established. The usage of these so called “chiptunes” in early computer games, strongly connect this audio aesthetics to playful and somehow pixelated associations in the visual sphere. They are still used in many ways. Despite that this sounds are simple and range in a low and “bad” quality, there still is a constant scene. Furthermore varying adaptions can be found in contemporary electronic music.

In a short introduction I will outline the background of chip-based music production and track some cultural developments. After that, I will be playing a selection of tunes in the long coffee break.

Foehrb – Mistress Revisited (RELEASE COMING SOON) by Foehrb

 
Additional Information & Resources:

Felix Urban is a student of Kulturarbeit at the FH Potsdam. His focus is on wide aspects of audio culture. He is a sound artist, producer of organic electronic music and plays as a DJ.As a student assistant of Prof. Dr. habil. Arthur Engelbert he participated in several projects on “urban acoustics” (“Stadtakustik”) and since 2010 he works in the Daimler “Research Group Society and Technology” as a student employee for urban acoustics and audio culture.

Some of his productions can be heard at his soundcloud site at soundcloud.com/foehrb

 
Abstract:

‘Reflow’: The world is your level

Classic computer games usually build a virtual world forming the context of game-play, thus placing the game “inside of” the computer. We wanted to explore the space of interaction without the classic constraints. Reality based interaction has recently become very popular with the advent of devices like Wii and Kinect for example. Yet these devices exploit only one part of the potential by acting merely as a controller replacement on a spatially fixed console.

We wanted to pursue a different approach on the same matter. The dogma is: The world is your level. Levels in our game ‘reflow’ are only solvable if you change your surroundings, be it by building something, changing light conditions, finding a fitting perspective, asking someone for help – or just flexing your own body. As a result people using reflow are encouraged to actively explore their environment in search for aesthetic yet practical solutions.

This different concept of mobile gaming posed us with a number of interesting game design questions. We want to share our experiences on that matter by giving insights into the process of making right and wrong decisions on the way.

 
Additional Information & Resources:
Frederik Maucksch & Matthias Wolff work at xymatic, an interdisciplinary research & design practice. They developed ‘reflow’, an augmented reality game that works with the real-time camera image.

 
Visit xymatic’s website
Take a look at the ‘reflow’ promo video below:

 
Abstract:

EcoChallenge – a digital companion to a more sustainable lifestyle.

The iPhone app EcoChallenge helps people to change their daily behaviours through little playful challenges, accompanied by eye-opening infographics and interactive calculators. The app allows users to compete with their friends through Facebook.
EcoChallenge is part of the research initiative »EcoViz« by the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam.
Timm Kekeritz will talk about the mechanics of the app, the process of creating it and the lessons learned.

More at eco-challenge.eu

 
Additional Information & Resources:
Timm Kekeritz is an interaction designer, software expert and simplicity enthusiast from Berlin. He is founder and managing director of the Raureif design consultancy. Prior to founding his own business in 2009, he worked for the international design firm IDEO in their San Francisco, Palo Alto and Munich offices. He also teaches at the Interface Design programme of Fachhochschule Potsdam and at the CIID programme at the Danish Design School in Copenhagen. Timm holds a degree in Interface Design from the Fachhochschule Potsdam and is alumnus of the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes.

 
Visit Raureif’s website