Gamification, What is it?
Key Findings about Gamification
A
s is the case for an emerging concept, defining the term “correctly” is both challenging and elusive as it depends on who you talk to: platform providers, game designers, practitioners, industry observers, etc.
■■ Gamification
is positioned to become a significant trend over the next few years.
■■ Organizations
are increasingly turning to gamification to motivate changed behaviors, and engage internal and external stakeholders.
Below, a Google Trends snapshot taken on April 2012 shows the historical evolution of Gamification as a search term. According to Gartner, “gamification has emerged as a recognizable trend. Rarely does an emerging trend impact so many areas of business/ society.”
■■ Novelty
and hype are driving the current success of gamification.
■■ Success
doesn’t come easy. “During four decades of video game development, many games have failed despite their developers having the best intentions”.
Sources: Gartner | Gamification Primer: Life Becomes a Game, enero 2011. Gartner | Maverick Research: Motivation, Momentum and Meaning: How Gamification Can Inspire Engagement, October 2011. Gartner | Innovation Insight: Gamification Adds Fun and Innovation to Inspire Engagement, December 2011
Some formal definitions
Researcher and Game Designer “The use of design elements from video games in non-game contexts to make a product, service, or application more fun, engaging, motivating” Source: Sebastian Deterding | Getting “Gamification” Right, January 2011
Gamification Platform Provider “When used in a business context, gamification is the process of integrating game dynamics (and game mechanics) into a website, business service, online community, content portal, or marketing campaign in order to drive participation and engagement.”
Evolution of the term “Gamification” in Google search
Source: Bunchball | Gamification 101: An Introduction to the Use of Game Dynamics to Influence Behavior, October 2010
Practitioner (Gamification Industry)
100 80
Gamification is “the process of using game thinking and mechanics to engage users.”
60
Source: Gabe Zichermann | Gamification: Innovation and the future, 2012
40 20 0
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Jan 11
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Industry Observer “Gamification uses game mechanics, such as challenges, rules, chance, rewards and levels, to transform daily tasks into playful activities.” Source: Gartner | Innovation Insight: Gamification Adds Fun and Innovation to Inspire Engagement, December 2011
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September 2012 | GAMIFICATION 15