Erasing The Delta: Creating Games Where There is No Gap Between Play and a Specific Task

Speakers: Jane McGonigal, Larry Holland, Leighton Read, Ross Smith

Track: SGS: Assessment & Results

Format: Lecture

Experience Level: All

Description: It was recently pointed out that most serious game designs involve the idea that you play a game and THEN do something as a result. There is a built-in delta between the act of playing a game and whatever the non-entertainment resultant is meant to be. It has also been said that play and work need not be different. We also know that the experiences we have in some games feel like work or it offers an immediate payback (e.g. communicating with someone during a game). With this as a backdrop, this panel session looks at a distinct but not well defined aspect to serious games:

"What are the means by which we design games where the delta between what you accomplish by playing goes away and the space between doing something in a game and accomplishing something important in the "real world" is one-in-the-same?

Such games already exist in various forms but they are few and far between and identifying real-design doctrine or models for them hasn't been done (save perhaps for some ARGs). Besides opening their minds to a new idea for serious games attendees, this session will have a chance to provide thoughts about how to erase the delta between games and work.