Group items tagged

A blog by a recent game design graduate features posts about "presence in games," creating levels and other ideas and commentary, also potentially serving as the author's portfolio.

"a national program that provides scientific leadership and resources to advance the research, design and effectiveness of digital games and game technologies that promote health. It is funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Pioneer Portfolio and headquartered at the University of California, Santa Barbara"

Abstract: "The intent of this research is attempt to discover what makes a multiplayer game fun, for it is the fun which will take the game from simply being a one off diversion and instead become a go to object in the social consciousness, no different to a pack of cards. "

Abstract: Joseph Campbell's Monomyth not only provides a well-proven pattern for successful storytelling, it may also help to guide teams and team leaders through the challenges of change and innovation processes. In project "HELD: Innovationsdramaturgie nach dem Heldenprinzip" researchers of the University of the Arts Berlin and the Berlin Gameslab, part of the University of Applied Sciences HTW-Berlin, team up to examine the applicability of the Hero's Journey to change management using an adaptation of Campbell's pattern called „Heldenprinzip®". The project's goal is not to teach the stages of the Monomyth as mere facts but to enable participants of training courses and interventions to actually experience its concepts using a portfolio of creative and aesthetic methods. While a pool of aesthetic methods - like drawing, performing or role-playing - is already being used, the Gameslab subproject qualitatively researches the potentials for enriching and complementing these methods with interactive digital media and games. This paper discusses three types of game based learning treatments to be used in training and intervention sessions as well as teaching the Monomyth in a game based learning university course. The first option is providing participants with a game that follows the Hero's Journey and inducing them to reflect on the experience and its relation to the learning goal. An alternative strategy is to make participants go through a game sequence broaching issues that are relevant for a stage or the journey of change in general. Last but not least, digital equivalents of the non-digital aesthetic methods can be constructed using digital games or digitally enhanced set-ups for playful interactions. All three treatments have their merits and pitfalls, which are discussed in relation to the identified game-based learning scenarios: self-study, blended game-based learning and face-to-face sessions"

"For millennia, humans have participated in rituals in order to experience meaning and purpose in life. With the rise of digital games as a form of media, designers are increasing seeking to use games to provide meaningful experiences - the kind of experiences provided by rituals. This project, Farosia, explores the mechanisms by which rituals convey meaning, and presents a detailed framework for how to incorporate ritual into interactive experience design. The project consists of several small game prototypes, each intended to emphasis different aspects of ritual. By developing and playtesting these prototypes, we were able to determine how to implement these ritual modes within digital experiences, and how to use them to create a more meaningful experience to the user."

Standard board games made social through integration with mobile devices and other novelties

Practice simple social skills with iPad game, designed for toddlers on autism spectrum

Health Games Research, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Pioneer Portfolio (RWJF), has updated its online health games database-the only one of its kind-by adding advanced search features to enhance the user experience. These updates make the database more accessible to new audiences and easier to search through saved searches and new item alerts.