Yes, the interest in learning games has exploded, along with the interest in gamification. Many practitioners want to create digital game play experiences as opposed to “Click NEXT to continue” eLearning. But when you get started in digital, how do you do it? How “game-y” does something need to be to produce solid learner engagement while maintaining the integrity of the learning experience? What best practices should you follow, and what pitfalls should you avoid? How is the design process the same? How is it different?

This session outlines the tools and techniques to use when designing learning games, revealing several simple learning games—and mistakes made in creating some of them. You will be able to identify what to do and the common pitfalls to avoid when designing a digital game. You will walk through up to five different learning games, learning the factors that influenced the fun and effectiveness of these games. Finally, you will be provided a learning game design template to use in getting started in digital game design.

In this session, you will learn:

• To identify what’s fun—and what’s not fun—in a digital games and how much fun is required for a game to be effective
• The nine game elements (cooperation, competition, rewards, resources, chance, strategy, aesthetics, story, theme) and factors to consider when incorporating into your games
• The three best practices in digital learning game design and three major pitfalls to avoid—and why
• The why, what, and how of play-testing a game
• The prototyping and game authoring tools available to those who want to dive into design and development

Audience:
Intermediate designers, directors, and managers.

Technology discussed in this session:
Construct2, Flash, JavaScript.