A Brief Review of Game Engines for Educational and Serious Games Development

2020 ◽  
pp. 447-469
Author(s):  
Humberto Marin-Vega ◽  
Giner Alor-Hernández ◽  
Ramon Zatarain-Cabada ◽  
Maria Lucia Barron-Estrada ◽  
Jorge Luis García-Alcaraz
Keyword(s):  
Learning Process ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Game Activity ◽  
Game Engines ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
Games Development

Gamification is the use of game design elements to enhance the teaching-learning process and turn a regular, non-game activity into a fun, engaging game. Simultaneously, serious games are proposed as an efficient and enjoyable way of conducting cognitive assessment, as they combine a serious intention with game rules and targets. In this scenario, game engines have emerged as information technologies for serious games and educational games development; however, this development has usually been performed without a guide to identifying game attributes to be present in the game. To address this gap, we present an analysis of the most used game engines to identify game and learning attributes supported for serious and educational games development. Findings from this analysis provide a guide of the most popular game engines that offer the largest support for game attributes, which were also classified by game categories.

A Brief Review of Game Engines for Educational and Serious Games Development

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-22 ◽  
Author(s):  
Humberto Marin-Vega ◽  
Giner Alor-Hernández ◽  
Ramon Zatarain-Cabada ◽  
Maria Lucia Barron-Estrada ◽  
Jorge Luis García-Alcaraz
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Assessment ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Game Activity ◽  
Game Engines ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
Games Development

Gamification is the use of game design elements to enhance the teaching-learning process and turn a regular, non-game activity into a fun, engaging game. Simultaneously, serious games are proposed as an efficient and enjoyable way of conducting cognitive assessment, as they combine a serious intention with game rules and targets. In this scenario, game engines have emerged as information technologies for serious games and educational games development; however, this development has usually been performed without a guide to identifying game attributes to be present in the game. To address this gap, we present an analysis of the most used game engines to identify game and learning attributes supported for serious and educational games development. Findings from this analysis provide a guide of the most popular game engines that offer the largest support for game attributes, which were also classified by game categories.

scholarly journals EGV: A Methodology Proposal to Educational Games Virtualization

RENOTE ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilk Oliveira dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Game Design ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Educational Game ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Traditional Game ◽  
Games Development ◽  
Psychological Concepts

Games Virtualization is a process of digital versions creation for traditional/ physical games. In education, this process aims to create digital versions for traditional/ physical educational games, keeping the psychological and pedagogical concepts from the traditional version, as well, to associate these concepts to the contemporary game design elements. One of the main challenges in this field is the lack of a specific methodology. In this sense, this study proposes a methodology to Educational Game Virtualization, starting in the traditional game chosen and ending in the evaluation, release, and maintenance of game. An experiment was conducted in order to evaluate the methodology, the results show that the methodology was effective in the games’ development, helping the professionals to develop the games, keeping the pedagogical and psychological concepts of traditional games version, associating these concepts to contemporary game design elements.

scholarly journals Gamification: motivating language learning with gameful elements

2021 ◽  
pp. 109-114
Author(s):  
Joan-Tomàs Pujolà
Keyword(s):  
Video Games ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Digital Video ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Game Based Learning ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Motivating Language ◽  
Methodological Strategy

What is it? Gamification is a methodological strategy that uses “game design elements in non-game contexts” (Deterding, Dixon, Khaled, & Nacke, 2011, p. 10). The purpose of gamification is to engage people, motivate action, promote learning, and solve problems (Kapp, 2012). There are other educational approaches that use playful components but are different from gamification, such as game-based learning or serious games. In those two cases, all kinds of games (digital video games, table games, outdoor games, etc.) or educational games are used to achieve a learning goal. Within the language learning area, Reinhardt (2019) opts for the global concept of ‘gamefulness’ which embraces all types of vernacular games, serious games, and gamification.

scholarly journals Integrating Health Behavior Theory and Design Elements in Serious Games

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen Cheek ◽  
Theresa Fleming ◽  
Mathijs FG Lucassen ◽  
Heather Bridgman ◽  
Karolina Stasiak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Behavior ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Behavior Change ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
User Perceptions ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
User Centered

Background Internet interventions for improving health and well-being have the potential to reach many people and fill gaps in service provision. Serious gaming interfaces provide opportunities to optimize user adherence and impact. Health interventions based in theory and evidence and tailored to psychological constructs have been found to be more effective to promote behavior change. Defining the design elements which engage users and help them to meet their goals can contribute to better informed serious games. Objective To elucidate design elements important in SPARX, a serious game for adolescents with depression, from a user-centered perspective. Methods We proposed a model based on an established theory of health behavior change and practical features of serious game design to organize ideas and rationale. We analyzed data from 5 studies comprising a total of 22 focus groups and 66 semistructured interviews conducted with youth and families in New Zealand and Australia who had viewed or used SPARX. User perceptions of the game were applied to this framework. Results A coherent framework was established using the three constructs of self-determination theory (SDT), autonomy, competence, and relatedness, to organize user perceptions and design elements within four areas important in design: computer game, accessibility, working alliance, and learning in immersion. User perceptions mapped well to the framework, which may assist developers in understanding the context of user needs. By mapping these elements against the constructs of SDT, we were able to propose a sound theoretical base for the model. Conclusions This study’s method allowed for the articulation of design elements in a serious game from a user-centered perspective within a coherent overarching framework. The framework can be used to deliberately incorporate serious game design elements that support a user’s sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, key constructs which have been found to mediate motivation at all stages of the change process. The resulting model introduces promising avenues for future exploration. Involving users in program design remains an imperative if serious games are to be fit for purpose.

scholarly journals Realizing a Mobile Multimodal Platform for Serious Games Analytics

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 19-48
Author(s):  
Laila Shoukry ◽  
Stefan Göbel
Keyword(s):  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Sensor Data ◽  
Educational Game ◽  
Evaluation Procedure ◽  
Multimodal Data ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Cognitive States ◽  
Game Developers

This paper presents the design and development of "StoryPlay Multimodal", a mobile multimodal analytics platform for the evaluation of Serious Games. It is intended to serve researchers, teachers and educational game developers as a means to assess their Serious Game Design. This is done by capturing, pre-processing, synchronizing and visualizing multimodal serious games analytics and mobile sensor data from playtesting sessions. By linking log data with multimodal data, it is possible to uncover relations between design elements, gameplay interactions, context parameters and affective and cognitive states. This is crucial for gaining full insight into the session, even if not present with the player at the same location. After discussing design requirements, the architecture of the software, the different modules, additional features, implementation challenges and solutions are presented. The testing settings, participants and results are also discussed to demonstrate how the evaluation procedure can be applied to deliver valuable outcomes for Serious Games Research.

scholarly journals Information technologies inside and outside the classroom

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andra Oneci ◽  
◽  
Maria-Magdalena Joița ◽  
◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Process ◽  
Cognitive Skills ◽  
Causal Reasoning ◽  
Concept Formation ◽  
Teaching And Learning ◽  
Information Technologies ◽  
Software And Hardware ◽  
Problem Solvers ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
Individualize Education

Technology is a means of accomplishing a task mainly by using technical processes, methods, or knowledge.The importance of technology in connection with any type of development is widely recognized, especially having considering nowadays’ worldwide Covid-19 context.The passage from standardized to digitalized teaching-learning process hasn’t been easy. Information technology and educational technology are now extensively being used in schools and refer to a wide multitude of teaching-and-learning–related software and hardware used during the lessons. Learning becomes effective when the students are actively engaged, are collaborating with one another, are in charge of their learning process, become critical thinkers and creative problem-solvers. Scientific thinking appears when thinking about the content of science and the set of reasoning processes that permeate the field of science: induction, deduction, experimental design, causal reasoning, concept formation, hypothesis testing, and so on, are combined. Simultaneously, teachers continue their lifelong learning process online, design digital lessons, gamify lessons, obtain real time results, are part of the staffroom at school and also part of a larger, more diverse, virtual staffroom. In conclusion, the goal of using technology inside and outside the classroom is perceived as a way to individualize education and to develop students’ competences and cognitive skills.

Linking the Elements of Learning, Assessment, and Play Experience in a Validation Framework

2019 ◽  
pp. 93-122
Author(s):  
Chin Ike Tan
Keyword(s):  
Subject Matter ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Educational Games ◽  
Knowledge Retention ◽  
Learning Assessment ◽  
Game Based Learning ◽  
Validation Framework ◽  
Teaching Learning ◽  
World Environment ◽  
Play Experience

Educational games are often described as a balancing act between the entertainment aspects of video games—be it the engagement, motivational, or immersive advantages of it—and the serious subject matter of teaching, learning, and assessment. Thus the key challenge of game-based learning is how the merging of these two aspects could assist in the knowledge retention and application of the subject matters within the real-world environment, especially in the realm of education. The chapter proposes a validation framework that can link elements of learning and assessment in a subject matter to play experience in educational games before those games are developed. The framework will allow game designers and developers to understand the cognitive processes of learning, not only in designing effective educational games, but also to comprehend the intricacies and connections between learning and principles of game design. This in turn enables game researchers to develop effective educational games which are pedagogically and ludologically sound.

scholarly journals Assistive HCI-Serious Games Co-design Insights: The Case Study of i-PROGNOSIS Personalized Game Suite for Parkinson’s Disease

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sofia Balula Dias ◽  
José Alves Diniz ◽  
Evdokimos Konstantinidis ◽  
Theodore Savvidis ◽  
Vicky Zilidou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parkinson’S Disease ◽  
Parkinson's Disease ◽  
Health Status ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Linear Regression Analysis ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Design Parameters ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Design Elements

Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and games set a new domain in understanding people’s motivations in gaming, behavioral implications of game play, game adaptation to player preferences and needs for increased engaging experiences in the context of HCI serious games (HCI-SGs). When the latter relate with people’s health status, they can become a part of their daily life as assistive health status monitoring/enhancement systems. Co-designing HCI-SGs can be seen as a combination of art and science that involves a meticulous collaborative process. The design elements in assistive HCI-SGs for Parkinson’s Disease (PD) patients, in particular, are explored in the present work. Within this context, the Game-Based Learning (GBL) design framework is adopted here and its main game-design parameters are explored for the Exergames, Dietarygames, Emotional games, Handwriting games, and Voice games design, drawn from the PD-related i-PROGNOSIS Personalized Game Suite (PGS) (www.i-prognosis.eu) holistic approach. Two main data sources were involved in the study. In particular, the first one includes qualitative data from semi-structured interviews, involving 10 PD patients and four clinicians in the co-creation process of the game design, whereas the second one relates with data from an online questionnaire addressed by 104 participants spanning the whole related spectrum, i.e., PD patients, physicians, software/game developers. Linear regression analysis was employed to identify an adapted GBL framework with the most significant game-design parameters, which efficiently predict the transferability of the PGS beneficial effect to real-life, addressing functional PD symptoms. The findings of this work can assist HCI-SG designers for designing PD-related HCI-SGs, as the most significant game-design factors were identified, in terms of adding value to the role of HCI-SGs in increasing PD patients’ quality of life, optimizing the interaction with personalized HCI-SGs and, hence, fostering a collaborative human-computer symbiosis.

scholarly journals Integrating Health Behavior Theory and Design Elements in Serious Games

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen Cheek ◽  
Theresa Fleming ◽  
Mathijs FG Lucassen ◽  
Heather Bridgman ◽  
Karolina Stasiak ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Behavior ◽  
Behavior Change ◽  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Behavior Change ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
User Perceptions ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
User Centered

Background Internet interventions for improving health and well-being have the potential to reach many people and fill gaps in service provision. Serious gaming interfaces provide opportunities to optimize user adherence and impact. Health interventions based in theory and evidence and tailored to psychological constructs have been found to be more effective to promote behavior change. Defining the design elements which engage users and help them to meet their goals can contribute to better informed serious games. Objective To elucidate design elements important in SPARX, a serious game for adolescents with depression, from a user-centered perspective. Methods We proposed a model based on an established theory of health behavior change and practical features of serious game design to organize ideas and rationale. We analyzed data from 5 studies comprising a total of 22 focus groups and 66 semistructured interviews conducted with youth and families in New Zealand and Australia who had viewed or used SPARX. User perceptions of the game were applied to this framework. Results A coherent framework was established using the three constructs of self-determination theory (SDT), autonomy, competence, and relatedness, to organize user perceptions and design elements within four areas important in design: computer game, accessibility, working alliance, and learning in immersion. User perceptions mapped well to the framework, which may assist developers in understanding the context of user needs. By mapping these elements against the constructs of SDT, we were able to propose a sound theoretical base for the model. Conclusions This study’s method allowed for the articulation of design elements in a serious game from a user-centered perspective within a coherent overarching framework. The framework can be used to deliberately incorporate serious game design elements that support a user’s sense of autonomy, competence, and relatedness, key constructs which have been found to mediate motivation at all stages of the change process. The resulting model introduces promising avenues for future exploration. Involving users in program design remains an imperative if serious games are to be fit for purpose.

scholarly journals Serious Game Design to Support Children Struggling with School Refusal

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 109-128
Author(s):  
Marikken Høiseth ◽  
Ole Andreas Alsos ◽  
Sindre Holme ◽  
Sondre Ek ◽  
Charlotte Tendenes Gabrielsen
Keyword(s):  
Game Design ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Well Being ◽  
School Refusal ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
Digital Tools ◽  
Human Centered Design ◽  
Design Elements ◽  
Number Of Children ◽  
Computer Interaction

A significant number of children worldwide struggle with school refusal. Games and digital tools represent a novel take on how to address this phenomenon. Our research aims to support children who are at risk or in an early phase of developing school refusal through serious games. In this paper we present current work, grounded in human-centered design, involving the application of a game design framework to elaborate on design elements and empirical evaluations of a serious game called Gnist (English: Spark). Based on this we discuss some implications for game design and key takeaways for researchers and practitioners working to design technologies for supporting children's well-being in attending school. We contribute to position serious games in a new context and anticipate our findings to be valuable to the Human-Computer Interaction community in general and specifically to the Child-Computer Interaction community.

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