I ask my studnets, “How can I make an instructional game that will teach you networking concepts as inviting and addicting to play as W.O.W.?” The response I received was, “Well, I don’t know, maybe you could come up with something like a Super Mario game,” replied one student. When I probed, he indicated that you could create a 2D game with differing levels. I asked him if it would be as engaging as W.O.W. He smiled and said, “No.”
With that encounter, and other similar ones; I have decided to explore W.O.W. this summer to see first hand what makes it so engaging that people lose all sense of time.
I already know some of the things that I will need to incorporate into my “serious games;” here are some of my findings (which go right along with all of the literature I have been reading through my Games and Simulations class):
1. Leveled play — needs to be missions/assignments that are challenging enough to obtain a sense of accomplishment once they are completed, yet not too difficult as to disinterest.
2. Collaboration – methods for sharing resources and talents to meet the intermediate or final goal.
3. Society Structure – have different roles that allow players to interact with each other based upon that role
4. Appealing graphics and modes of interaction — I am hoping Second Life will provide this.
Second Life appeals to me as a medium to use because of #2-#4 above. It does not have a “Leveled-play,” but I am hoping that it can somehow be scripted. What I really like about Second Life is the ability to create — if a learner finds an activity “lame,” they could simply create a better activity. That would make for some very powerful learning!