ANIRUDH CHERUVU
Blog
Game Design & Gamification
Greetings Ally! Let us begin a quest in this learning space where I get to share some of the ideas and insights about Video Game Design and Gamification and have fun doing it -
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Copter’s eye-view of Gamification
Before vocal cords evolved, our common ancestors used to play with twigs and dice made from animal bones. Play is an integral part of human and animal DNA. Act of playing partly teaches natural skills; cubs play with each other to learn to attack during hunt. Our first game as babies is ‘Pick-a-boo’ where we get associated with the element of surprise by shifting from an unrecognizable identity (covered face) to a recognizable identity (revealed face). Games motivate us to take specific directed actions through voluntary participation, where the incentive is joy and to have fun.
Gamification is the process of harnessing the power of game mechanics from game design and apply them in non-game contexts to trigger motivation and alter behaviors or learn skills. Game mechanics include Points, Achievements, Badges, Leaderboards, etc. It is to be noted that the context here is non-game, it can be anything other than a board game or a video game, like sales, SAAS, edTech, finTech, eLearning, leadership training, employee engagement, etc used by organizations or individuals who are not necessarily game-related, like software companies, app developers, fitness coaches, etc. Gamification is more of a discovery, than an invention; to motivate through joy-filled activities is not new, except that here the abstract elements of real-life are quantified. Our brains understand numbers and derive meaning from them. Comparitive numbers make better cognitive understanding; there are more stars than all grains of sand combined, is more relatable than saying there are 10^26 stars in the observable universe. Games tend to quantify abstract qualities like Strength, Dexterity, Power, Vitality, Intelligence, etc. We possess these qualities in ourselves too, when they are attempted to be quantified, there is a sense of anticipation of what makes these stats grow.
Points are relatable quantifiers of progress, earning them for activities reinforces a sense of reward and acknowledgement for the effort that is been put. For instance, you get 10 Body points for working out for an hour, or 20 mind points for meditating for 30 minutes, gives a sense of excitement and motivate to repeat the action because accumulation of quantifiable elements is satiating. Add a few rules to this, it becomes a game in itself; like earn 100 body points and 70 mind points to buy your favourite drink. Goals require clarity of purpose, tracking progress that positions in the line of achievement, and endorsement to help strategize through the way. Games give all of it and much more that real-life lacks. Achievements are an excellent reward for achieving milestones or creative ways of accomplishing mini-goals. They recognize the player’s (I am using this term in place of ‘individual’) effort in the journey giving a sense of accomplishment. Earning Achievements releases Dopamine and fuels self-confidence to achieve the goal. Group dynamics can be triggered and synergized with Leaderboards making players wanting to see their scores compared their peers in a ranked system.
It would be joyful to perform a task when it is ‘gamified’ because doing so removes boredom and turns a mundane task into a fun-filled activity. The phenomenon of gamification when done right astonishingly transforms the user engagement enabling desirable behavior and habitual changes to achieve a common goal or a set of goals.
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Why fun matters?
Having fun in life has been an aspiration for many of us and it is not restricted to childhood. It was a drizzling winter in Connecticut as I was sitting in a park paradoxically resonating with my life’s challenges in a cauldron of emotions. There went by a mother and a child walking on a snow-filled wet park trail as the child jumped on the snow making her foot marks, her mother also started jumping. As the little girl started walking and making her foot marks on the snow, her mother started landing on her daughter’s foot prints. It became a little game in itself. All emotions changed in a moment of that sight as I enjoyed watching their game.
Fun is inherent in us and is a natural instinct. It is amusing to notice that any small thing in life can be made fun if its made into a game. Let’s take the most boring daily chore like putting the dishes in the dishwasher. Set a 3 minute timer, award points for each dish you put in the dishwasher and count how many points you earned before the time-limit. It has just became a game in itself. And boy, it’s fun!
Joy in any task that we perform, instantly alters our state of mind and gets us into a flow of focus and engagement voluntarily. When that task is finished, there will be a gush of positive emotions, besides the thrill of completing a task. The key word here is ‘voluntary participation’ that games enable. We willfully take part in an activity, caring less about the outcome, though having an outcome in mind and plan fuels the process.
Games like this can also be competitive. In case of the dish-washing example, think of how much fun it could be to compete for points with your partner within the time-limit. Consistently engaging in fun activities with others have proven to deepen empathy and emotional bond. It also shifts the focus to the here and now, to live in the moment, which is critical and rare as most of us are either anchored to the past or future in our minds. Harnessing the power of group dynamics, ,engaging fun-filled games played in groups drive innovation, be it in families, friends or even enterprises.
Being able to gamify simple activities fosters creativity, that can be used as a muscle to grow. Think of weekend family scavenger hunts in the house to find and remove unused items. Fun matters because its what makes us alive, happy, joyous and adventurous. Fun matters because it eases out the stress and anxiety. Fun matters because….games are fun!
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Chess in WWII setting
This article attempts to reinterpret Chess in World War II setting called Red Earth.
Red Earth
Setting: It is July 1944, the allied air landing zones have been destroyed by the German forces in response to D’Day attack while the intel acquired by the Russian agents reveal that Infantry and Artillery units from both sides are confronting at Section C42 east coast spearheaded by their respective Field Marshals. Russian reinforcements are awaiting to join the Allied forces and Japanese reinforcements will fight alongside German forces. Choose your side, assemble forces, strategize and wage one of the bloodiest battles in history marking your way to glory as the land turns red with the sacrifices of brave men.
Adaption from Chess: The rules of chess are integrated into Red Earth in a way that enables attack ranges instead of movement. Red Earth is a turn-based board game played by two players where the key to victory lies in skill and strategy akin to Chess. The objective is to capture the Field Marshall of the opposing forces. Areas are mapped in alternate Black and White blocks except for Force-Restricted Zones (FRZ)where the opposing forces may not enter. Each map is distinctly crafted enabling equal grid/play space. There are two such areas in any map; Helipad zones and Communication bases, each colored Green or Blue indicating the side player chose. Only Army units can enter these areas and must not stay for more than two turns if not pinned by enemy units. Units inside these zones can’t be killed.
Archetypes: Most of the archetypes in Red Earth are analogous to Chess with restrictions and abilities. There are two types of archetypes in the game: Army and Vehicle units.
Rules:
• There are a total of 17 units along with two Watch Towers and three Anti-Vehicle Mines(AVMs) for each player.
• Each playeris given 5 Infantry, one Field Marshall, one Wartank, two Pounders, two Snipers, and two Armoured vehicles along with two AVMs at the beginning of the game. The player can acquire extra units (reinforcements) from Helipad zone.
• The player can place the units simultaneously in any order in their territory. Strategic placement depends on the given map.
• Watch towers can also be placed at desired locations at the beginning of the game.
• Each player in his turn can place AVMs through Infantry or Sniper units. Because both parties know the position of these mines, the opposing force must either avoid them or sacrifice to clear or disarm them. There are in total of three mines for each player, but the player can only place two at a time. AVMs can explode when a vehicle steps on it and impacts nearby Infantry/Sniper units within its range. To disarm an AVM, one of the army units must be inside the Comm base and one on the mine field. The disarmed mines can not be reused by the opposing force.
• Communication Bases are restricted areas for opposing forces and can only be used by the respected parties to i) communicate with the Infantry or Snipers in the minefield to disarm them and ii) act as a supply base to take out one extra mine if one of the two AVMs is disabled or exploded.
• Helipads are also Force-Restricted Zones. These bases can spawn reinforcements twice through out the game. First set of reinforcements are two Infantry. Second set of reinforcements are one Infantry unit and one Pounder/Sniper unit. The player can just declare that reinforcements have arrived and eject them from the Helipads. For each reinforcements there must be a difference of at least two turns. This means the second set can be called on the third turn or any subsequent turn.
• Infantry promotion – Infantry can be promoted to a Pounder, a Sniper, an Armored Vehicle, or a Wartank when it reaches the edge of the enemy territory.
Essence of World War II in Red Earth:
The timeline at which the game is set gains heat. This battle is post D’Day scenario where the resistance is strong from both sides. As the Airbases are destroyed by German forces, reinforcements arrive through Helipads. During this time, most of the fighting units are untrained and hence the aspect of Communication Base where an Army unit gives instructions to another Army unit at the mine field to disarm the Anti-Vehicle Mines. Mechanics of Red Earth enable realistic tactical decision making and strategize the warzone. The balance between attack through long ranged units and towers, and defence through mines, is demanded in every play. Each step is crucial and determines the odds for the player. The player feels the terrain in each map through strategic placement of towers and mines as well as the positions of their respective Helipad and Communication Bases.
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