Presentation by frog Senior interaction Designer Alex Tam from the ILN Changing the Game Summit in Seattle.

1. Health and Games: Behaviors and Mechanics
Alex Tam
May 2, 2011

2. Behaviors
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3. Presentation Title Speaker Name Innovation Learning Network Changing the Game 3

4. Daily Exercises
10 squats X 6
20 lunges alternating X 3
10 plank push up X 3
20 calf stretches
Jump Rope 5 mins
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5. Patient Behaviors Drive Health
1. Rehabilitation exercises
2. Medication compliance
3. Progress measurement
4. Nutrition Plan
5. Correcting Bad Habits
Note:
In many of these cases the HCP engagement is short.
The patient is responsible for much of the treatment.
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6. Health Behaviors are HARD
We know we SHOULD be doing these BUT they are:
Frustrating
Extra work
Hours of effort
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7. What about Games?
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8. Why Games?
Games have the ability
to get people engaged.
They get people to do
challenging difficult things.
People will play for hours and
hours even through fatigue.
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9. Why Games?
Old Historic Games.
Three examples of cultural Games. (example 1, example 2, example 3)
What is it about games that makes it compelling in out culture. Folded into
every aspect of our culture.
Why. Let’s talk about that cultural power.
Games are everywhere.
- Credit cards
- Report cards
- Bonus Miles
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10. Why Games?
Three examples of cultural Games. (example 1, example 2, example 3)
What is it about games that makes it compelling in out culture. Folded into
every aspect of our culture.
Why. Let’s talk about that cultural power.
Games are everywhere.
- Credit cards
- Report cards
- Bonus Miles
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11. Why Games?
Credit card points
What is it about games that makes it compelling in out culture. Folded into
every aspect of our culture.
Why. Let’s talk about that cultural power.
Games are everywhere.
- Credit cards
- Report cards
- Bonus Miles
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12. Health Behavior vs. Games
HEALTH BEHAVIORS GAMES
Frustrating – “Don’t feel like doing it” Frustrating – “Bring on the challenge!”
Extra work – “Enough work for today” Extra work – “If I stretch, I can win!”
Hours of effort – “This is a chore” Hours of effort – “Tired but want to continue”
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13. Mechanics
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14. Game Mechanics 101
All Games can be broken down
into one or more game
mechanics.
These game mechanics are the
building blocks of games, the
active ingredients that drive how
a game is played and whether or
not it’s engaging.
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15. Pictionary
Draw pictures within a category that your teammates can guess.
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16. Pictionary: Lottery (chance)
A game dynamic that is
subject to chance. This
creates a high level of
anticipation.
Players randomly roll dice
and then randomly select a
card from the deck.
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17. Pictionary: Countdown
The dynamic in which players
are only given a certain
amount of time to do
something. This will create an
activity graph that causes
increased initial activity
increasing frenetically until
time runs out.
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18. Pictionary: Team Competition
Team competition creates a
sense of camaraderie and
shared goals. Team success
depends on co-operation.
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19. Basic Game Mechanics
1. Lottery
2. Countdown
3. Team Competition
4. Narrative
5. Leader Board
6. Progression Dynamic
7. Meta Game
8. Status
9. Achievement
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20. Health Games
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21. Example 1: Expresso Fitness
A bicycle game where pedaling lets you move around in a virtual
game world with the objective of chasing dragons.
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22. Expresso Fitness: Countdown
The objective is to gather as
many dragons within a set
time. Maintaining a level of
intensity in this game.
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23. Expresso Fitness: Narrative
The game is set in a fantasy
world where the play escapes
to an alternate reality and
does consciously focus on
the physical exertion of
pedaling.
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24. Example 2: Nike +
A system of measurement devices and software that lets runners
track progress while activating communities of runners
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25. Nike +: Leaderboard
The rankings of all individuals
in a micro-set. Often great for
distributed game dynamics
where you want many micro-
competitions or desire to
induce loyalty.
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26. Nike +: Progression Dynamic
A dynamic in which success
is granularly displayed and
measured through the
process of completing
itemized tasks. As runners
accumulate miles, they switch
from yellow level to green
level. Small contributions add
up to a large recognition.
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27. Example 3: Brain Age
A series of small puzzles and tasks designed to test and sharpen
brain response through mental exercises
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28. Brain Age: Meta Game
A series of small games
embedded into another
game. These small puzzles
break up and focus
engagement.
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29. Brain Age: Status
The rank or level of a player.
Players are often motivated
by trying to reach a better
level or status.
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30. Applying Game
Mechanics
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31. Daily Exercises
10 squats X 6
20 lunges alternating X 3
10 plank push up X 3
20 calf stretches
Jump Rope 5 mins
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32. Measuring success
Have to vs Want to.
Good health games successfully apply game mechanics that
make games fun to play. They will be successful because it
shifts difficult and undesirable tasks into something that
patients will actually look forward to doing.
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33. Thank You
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