Description:

The exploding enthusiasm to find utility for games beyond pure entertainment holds amazing promise to forge new ways for people to derive satisfaction from their experience of technology. Yet actual efforts to hybridize games with nongames have brought a glut of unappealing, joyless, and ineffective designs. The emerging emphasis on "gamification" has worsened the problem, pushing the discussion farther away from experience and closer toward exploitation. In this webcast talk led by John Ferrara, author of Playful Design, brings things back to the basics of good design practice, with an emphasis on how games themselves can create real value in the real world.

In this webcast we will:

• Look at some common mistakes people make
• Review the inherent strengths of games
• Go through a model for designing effective experiences

About John Ferrara

John Ferrara has worked as a user experience practitioner since 1999 and began designing video games in 2001. His nutrition education game Fitter Critters was a top prizewinner in the 2010 Apps for Healthy Kids contest sponsored by Michelle Obama's "Let's Move!" campaign, and has had demonstrated benefit in schools. In 2011 he co-founded Megazoid Games, which focuses on creating mobile, social, and educational player experiences.

Twitter: @PlayfulDesign