Project Description
Serious Game Design & Research
Design
Praxis was serious game designed collaboratively in a broad game format related to a specified application area, which was to teach the user on the fundamentals on critical thinking.
The research also included game mechanics, pedagogical challenges and to produce a board game for the educational purposes
Skills & Experience
HCI • Games studies • Game-based learning • Game theory
Demonstrates a critical understanding and knowledge of history and development of Games development and research
Design games for interested application domain using interaction devices and software
Research and reflect on games design literature as well as HCI, games studies, game -based learning and game theory
Disciplined thinking that is clear, rational, open minded and informed by evidence
The Problem
Research • Pedagogical patterns • learning
Misconceptions of students impacting the students in accessing critical thinking
Students lacked a methodology, tool or strategies to practice or achieve high level critical thinking
Reluctant from younger or international students to challenge or lacked confidence in challenging authority figures
Excepting there is more than one way to understand the world by answering questions on social, cultural or
Triadic Design
Meaning • Reality • Game
Triadic design offered the games application usefulness of using digital games beyond entertainment. The Triadic methodology offered fundamentals of designing any game with a serious purpose and provides a way of thinking on how to design one successfully.
Play
Praxis gameplay begins with the player being a student of Praxis and relies on the skills of attention to detail, catergorisation and critical debate. The game takes place in a fictional space called planet praxis. The game ends when the player have gone through the six stages of Praxis and the winner is the player with the most diamonds of Knowledge
Reality
Students thinking they are rational thinkers and not challenging their personal belief systems. Students not confident in challenging experts in their field. Students not having the resources to access high level academic thinking. Misunderstanding what’s is meant by “critical thinking”
Meaning
Critical thinking, strong skills in awareness and understanding of ones own thought processess, monitoring and identifying thinking process and checking progress towards goal. Learning principles which encourage active and critical, not passive learning and appreciating interactions.
Gameplay
Meaning • Reality • Game
The players are asked to create visual arguments, using symbols (Praxis cards) and argument cards
Praxis card
1 pointScoring
White
Praxis card
2 pointScoring
White
Card
Praxis card
3 pointScoring
White
Card
Rectangle
Game Flow
& player interaction
Progress • Evaluation • Score
The game flow and player interactions were visualised through diagrams that represented the game stage which was a large game loop, and encompassed three basic loops, player turn, progress token and evaluation phase.
Final results
Meaning • Reality • Game
The initial idea was to create a dynamic, interactive and strategy driven card game. Players interact with visual problem solving environment where they can have a challenging social experience.
