A sweet Milestone

Well, we just found this:

Our logo shows up when people look for BLUErabbit in google images. It wasn’t there a couple of days ago! šŸ˜€

Thanks for using BLUErabbit! Let’s keep putting #gamification in every classroom!

RAMP analysis

Short RAMP Analysis

#gamification core elements analyzed

Ok, so what’s the deal with RAMP.

It stands for Relatedness, Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose. The four most important concepts of a #gamification strategy.

However it’s not just that simple. Experts all around the world have proposed several explanations on it. It comes from the Self Determination Theory (SDT) and Daniel H. Pink’s book: Drive. Andrzej Marczewski combined all concepts and it’s the most accepted version around.

In SDT, the core concepts are Autonomy, Competence and Relatedness. In Drive, Autonomy, Mastery and Purpose.

Combining them it ends up as RAMP. Competence and Mastery are pretty much the same thing.

The definition for each concept is this:

Relatedness > The need to connect with others. Connectivity.

Autonomy > The freedom to choose and do what’s in your mind. Independence.

Mastery > The ability to become better at, well, anything. Achievement.

Purpose > The feeling to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Belonging.

Edward L. Deci andĀ Richard M. Ryan, as authors of SDT, were looking for an explanation on what motivates people. They worked even further in the definition of intrinsic and extrinsic motivation.

Now, how does behavioral theories combine with #gamification?

Simple. Games motivate people BETTER than anything else. The reason lies with RAMP. A good game easily offers all core elements to the player.

Now, if you keep your strategy ALWAYS close to RAMP, then everything else will be simpler.

Will post several new things on this analysis šŸ™‚ Let me know your thoughts!Ā 

Bernardo Letayf

Bernardo Letayf

M.B.O. (Mind Behind the Operation)

6th position in the Gamification Gurus Power 100!

Gamification Keynote SpeakerĀ & the mind behind the operation @bluerabbit, a gamification platform for education.

Developed three frameworks to teach/learn how to create gamification systems and build gamified content

Declared a world wide war on grades.

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8 + 10 =

Using the 4K2F to test your design

Using the 4K2F to test your design

The Four Keys to FUN

Using the 4K2F to test your #gamification design

4K2F

Despite what some #Gamification experts (yes, I’m talking to you Andzrej) fun is an important element. NOW… Andzrej Marczewski is NOT wrong: Fun must be experienced as a consequence of the experience. Do not FORCE it. So, how do you design for it?

Nicole Lazzarro made this amazing thing called the FOUR KEYS TO FUNĀ where she explains there are FOUR different kinds of FUN:

  1. EASY FUN: The simplest kinds of fun. Popping bubble wrap, tearing up the paper of a plastic bottle, flipping a coin just for the sound, ringing the bell at the front desk. These are simple tasks that reward each player with simple and easy laughs… or at least a smile.
  2. SERIOUS FUN: The kind of FUN you have when you are actually engaged in something. Let’s say you are in a meeting with your boss, you are making decisions and are being Ā taken seriously. You feel empowered and you suddenly realize you could be doing this more often. THAT is serious fun. Regardless of you laughing, you are actually feeling happy and want to be in that “zone”. It’s really relatable to the feeling of FLOW.
  3. PEOPLE FUN: Everything we do is always more FUN with someone else. I try not to go into detail here, but it’s really all about making connection and social engagement. Imagine last scenario without your boss, other people in the room or a market to throw your ideas to. When we interact with others, we have a lot of emotional rewards. When we do that as part of a team, that’s really fun.
  4. HARD FUN: How about long term rewards? How do you feel after working with your team on a VERY long project that finally came ouyt and everything went ok? That experience can’t be bought by money. The feeling is close to “FIERO” which comes exactly after FLOW. The fun you have when achieving HARD work

 

 

Bernardo Letayf

Bernardo Letayf

M.B.O. (Mind Behind the Operation)

6th position in the Gamification Gurus Power 100!

Gamification Keynote SpeakerĀ & the mind behind the operation @bluerabbit, a gamification platform for education.

Developed three frameworks to teach/learn how to create gamification systems and build gamified content

Declared a world wide war on grades.

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8 + 13 =

Testing your design

Testing your design

Testing your design

How to know you are going in the right direction

Knowing you are doing the right thing in #Gamification is really hard when you don’t have the right tools at hand. Now, the first thing you should keep in mind are your KPIs. These little guys will tell if ANY project is going in the right direction, however, one thing is the business side of the system and a different the gamified side. When building your system first hand, before ANY data comes in (which is ultimately the one and only compass you must follow) there are a couple of toys you can use to see the north:

Dynamics.

In our Game master framework, the first thing you do is build the game dynamics. Each of them provide a simple question to see if you have dealt with all basic components of a gamified system:

  • Narrative > Why are the players here?
  • Environment > How do the players feel? Are they playing together or against each other?
  • Win State > How do you know you win/finish the game? At what point can I call a victory or a defeat?
  • Progression > How do I know if I’m going forward or backwards? Do you provide enough feedback to your players?
  • Relationships > How do players play between them and by themselves? Are there enough tools that will allow them to play?
  • Boundaries > How long and where can the players play?

SAPS

Introduced by Gabe Zichermann, this simple model helps you check that your rewards are in place and well done:

  1. STATUS: It refers to a position of a player in relation to the rest. This DO NOT mean at any point better or worse. Status as a reward can be received in many different ways.
  2. ACCESS: Players gain access to information, items, objects, experiences or anything that NOT all players do. STATUS can grant ACCESS to some place (like a palace or the store in front) therefore killing two stones with one bird
  3. POWER: The word EMPOWERMENT applies too. The ability to do something not all players can. STATUS can grant ACCESS to information that gives the player POWER to make decisions other players can’t (for example)
  4. STUFF: Things not all players have. Things players earn by completing tasks, quests or challenges. STATUS can grant ACCESS to a place where the player has the POWER to use the information he earlier gained to earn STUFF they couldn’t get anywhere else.

When using SAPS make sure players receive rewards that are well rounded in all FOUR types. STUFF can be perceived as money (and it usually is). Not the best way to reward players because by human nature, MONEY IS NEVER ENOUGH!

4K2F

Nicole Lazzarro made this amazing thing called the FOUR KEYS TO FUNĀ where she explains FOUR different kinds of FUN:

  1. EASY FUN: Curiosity, surprise, wonder, awe. This are basic elements to consider. Everybody likes having simple fun.
  2. SERIOUS FUN: Excitement, Zen focus, engagement. The feeling you get when doing something you like.
  3. PEOPLE FUN: Amusement, Admiration, teamwork. Everything is more fun with someone else, right?
  4. HARD FUN: Frustration, Fiero, relief. How good does it feel when finishing off a hard project? There. That’s it.

Inclusion

This part refers to the player types and the differences. Make sure to include them in your design as well. We based our framework in the use of the HEXAD from Andrzej Marczewski. All details can be found in his website and in one of the following posts.

The Hexad covers basically 6 different type of players. Based on the work by Richard Bartle, Marczewski proposes four intrinsically motivated player types and 2 additional ones: The player/user type and the disruptor.

  1. Achiever: Motivated by MASTERY, this type of player will try to achieve EVERYTHING in the system (finish each and every quest). Think of them as the “A” student, always in front of the class, always studying. Favorite question: “Am I the only who read the instructions?”
  2. Philantropist: Motivated by PHILANTROPIC PURPOSE.Ā Really important to make the difference. These players will want to help others just because they want to. They also like to be or lead teams in order to accomplish meaningful goals. Great Leaders. Favorite question: “Why won’t you separate plastic?”
  3. Socialiser: Motivated by RELATEDNESS, this players will want to connect with as many others as possible. They love social games, cooperation and competition as long as it means connecting with more players. Favorite question: “So what’s the best place to party around here?”
  4. Free-Spirit: Motivated by AUTONOMY they will want to follow their hearts through the game. They use their guts as guidance and love to explore EVERYTHING that seems explorable. Favorite question: “Can I go to the top of the mountain?”

Now, this are just 4 different ways to test your design. We are missing the most crucial one, but we’ll talk about it in another post. This one is already too long.

 

 

Bernardo Letayf

Bernardo Letayf

M.B.O. (Mind Behind the Operation)

6th position in the Gamification Gurus Power 100!

Gamification Keynote SpeakerĀ & the mind behind the operation @bluerabbit, a gamification platform for education.

Developed three frameworks to teach/learn how to create gamification systems and build gamified content

Declared a world wide war on grades.

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11 + 7 =

The effects of violent video games

The effects of violent video games

The effects of violent video games

Hard-core players of violent video games do not have emotionally blunted brains

I read this information a while back, but I wanted to share it with you.

Violent GAMES do NOT, I repeat, DO N-O-T,Ā cause aggression.

The full article is here (please, support them by clicking)Ā and you can read even further Ā hereĀ 

It’s great to know this because the brain KNOWS the difference between killing polygons and people. So please tell your parents about it.

Let everyone know that according to an FMRI study:

Excessive users of violent video games do not show emotional desensitization

Abstract

Playing violent video games have been linked to long-term emotional desensitization. We hypothesized that desensitization effects in excessive users of violent video games should lead to decreased brain activations to highly salient emotional pictures in emotional sensitivity brain regions. Twenty-eight male adult subjects showing excessive long-term use of violent video games and age and education matched control participants were examined in two experiments using standardized emotional pictures of positive, negative and neutral valence. No group differences were revealed even at reduced statistical thresholds which speaks against desensitization of emotion sensitive brain regions as a result of excessive use of violent video games.

SOURCE: Ā https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11682-016-9549-y?wt_mc=alerts.TOCjournals
Bernardo Letayf

Bernardo Letayf

M.B.O. (Mind Behind the Operation)

6th position in the Gamification Gurus Power 100!

Gamification Keynote SpeakerĀ & the mind behind the operation @bluerabbit, a gamification platform for education.

Developed three frameworks to teach/learn how to create gamification systems and build gamified content

Declared a world wide war on grades.

<a class="twitter-timeline" data-height="400" href="https://twitter.com/bletayf">Tweets by Bernardo Letayf</a> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

12 + 7 =