Game Design Techniques and Elements

In any gamifying process, the game elements are indispensable pieces in the design and development of a gamified activity. Deterding and his colleagues (2011) consider game elements as a fundamental part of the gamification concept and according to these authors, game elements, not necessarily all and cumulatively, play a preponderant role for the development of a game and game-playing experience.

These elements are the foundation of all gamified systems and have their origin in the MDA framework (Mechanics, Dynamics and Aesthetics), developed by Hunicke, LeBlanc and Zubek (2004), that form the core of a gamified design and the playful experience, both from the point of view of the designer and the end-user.

The MDA framework was revisited by Werbach and Hunter (2012) and according to the authors, game elements tools can be taken from the game’s core, being considered regular patterns, and used in business and/or other non-game contexts. These authors also proposed a framework entitled as The Game Element Hierarchy or DMC Pyramid which encompasses different categories of game elements, as shown in Figure 4.

2. GAMIFICATION AND MOTIVATION

GAMIFICATION AND SENIOR CYCLO-TOURISM: DESIGNING AN APP FOR THE MIONE COMMUNITY

Figure 4 - The DMC Pyramid. Adapted from “For the Win: How Game Thinking Can Revolutionize Your Business” (Werbach & Hunter, 2012)

The structure of the pyramid is divided into three levels, in which a progression principle is applied (i.e. the lower levels constitute the path to access the elements of a higher level), ranging from the abstract (the dynamics) to the concrete (the components) and being interlinked with the mechanics:

i. The lowest level of the pyramid refers to the Game Components that include achievements, avatars, badges, boss fights, collections, combat, unlocking content, gifting, rankings, levels, points, quests, social chart, teams and virtual goods;

ii. Mechanics are related with challenges, chances, cooperation and competition, feedback, acquisition of resources, rewards, transactions, turns and win states;

iii. Dynamics embody narrative, relationships, emotions, constraints and progression.

2.2.1. Components

The Game Components are the basis of Game Elements, because they are the particular way of performing high level actions represented by the Dynamics and Game Mechanics (Werbach & Hunter, 2012).

2. GAMIFICATION AND MOTIVATION

GAMIFICATION AND SENIOR CYCLO-TOURISM: DESIGNING AN APP FOR THE MIONE COMMUNITY

• Achievements: Reward the player when completed a set of specific tasks; • Avatar: Visual representation of the player character;

• Badges: Visual representation of the accomplishments achieved in the game;

• Boss Fights: These fights translating into more difficult challenges usually occur between players and NPC (i.e. non-player characters), that usually happens at the end of the level;

• Collections: Set of items or emblems that can be collected;

• Combat: This action involves guiding and defeating opponents in fights and challenges; • Unlocking Content: Games can offer the possibility of unlocking access to restricted

content in the game, if the requirements, goals or missions are met;

• Gifting: This action refers to the possibility of offering virtual items or coins to other players;

• Rankings: These are ordered lists of players, according to their scores;

• Levels: Game levels translate the player’s performance in the game, having an impact on their progress;

• Points: Numerical representation of the player's performance in the game, and, as a rule, the points and levels are intertwined;

• Quests: These are predefined challenges and objectives, which once achieved, are translated into rewards;

• Social Chart: This is the visual representation of the social network of players; • Teams: Groups of players that work together in order to achieve a common goal; • Virtual Goods: These are objects and items that have meaning for their users, given their

role in the virtual world. Sometimes players are willing to spend virtual and/or real currency to access to such goods.

2. GAMIFICATION AND MOTIVATION

GAMIFICATION AND SENIOR CYCLO-TOURISM: DESIGNING AN APP FOR THE MIONE COMMUNITY

2.2.2. Mechanics

Game Mechanics are defined as a set of rules and techniques used, individually or together, as building blocks to gamify something (e.g. a website or an app), motivate the end-user (Deterding et al., 2011) and manage the users’ performance with incentives, feedback and rewards.

Werbach and Hunter (2012) highlight that Game Mechanics are the responsible elements for the user’s actions associated to a gamified experience. These actions can be the following: competing, cooperating, rewarding, transacting, challenging, among others. Thus, the game mechanics produce a significant response from the player (Zichermann & Cunningham, 2011).

Game Mechanics embody the following elements (Werbach & Hunter 2012):

• Challenges: The game sets goals for the player to achieve;

• Chances: User’s actions are goal-oriented, creating a sense of uncertainty and surprise. Therefore, the luck factor is also considered, which means that not everything is decided by the player’s ability;

• Cooperation and Competition: Players can work together to achieve certain goals or, on the contrary, be opponents in which only one will be a winner;

• Feedback: This feature enables the players to check their performance during game- playing, fostering a sense of progression and help, if applicable, in decision-making;

• Acquisition of Resources: Players may collect or purchase additional items associated to their achievements and winning/victory conditions;

• Rewards: Benefits obtained from the accomplishment of some objectives or certain achievements;

• Transactions: Transaction can involve buying and selling or exchanging something with other players in the game, directly or through intermediaries;

• Turns: Players' participation can be sequential and alternate. However, there are many real-time games, in which there are no turns;

2. GAMIFICATION AND MOTIVATION

GAMIFICATION AND SENIOR CYCLO-TOURISM: DESIGNING AN APP FOR THE MIONE COMMUNITY

2.2.3. Dynamics

Werbach and Hunter (2012) point out that Game Dynamics are at the top-level of conceptual game elements or gamified approach. Game Dynamics undergoes evolutions to meet the players’ needs, desires and motivations.

Gamification Dynamics are the types of behaviour that players adopt in their experience, which are based on how they use the selected game mechanics (Robson et al., 2015) and mechanics related to the game behaviour and strategic interactions (Camerer, 2014).

Since this concept is based on the way players adopt the Mechanics (Robson et al, 2015), all these aspects must be considered and managed (Werbach & Hunter, 2012), in order to lead to the success of a gamified system. According to Zichermann and Cunningham (2011), Game Dynamics are related to how the players interact and engage with the system, whereas Game Mechanics are the tools used to generate the gameplay experience. Game Mechanics are, therefore, a complement to Game Dynamics.

Werbach and Hunter (2012) categorize the following elements as Game Dynamics:

• Narrative: The structure that brings parts of the game or the gamified system together into a coherent whole;

• Relationships: Common social dynamics are very important for the game playing experience, since people have and feel the need to interact with others, generating a feeling of camaraderie, status and altruism;

• Emotions: The way users feel and express the emotions are driven by the game; • Constraints: Limitations of the game;

• Progression: It does not specifically require levels and points but should give the user the feeling that they are having the opportunity to evolve.