Washington State Algebra Challenge Uses DragonBox App to Promote Math

The most effective educational games are the ones that teach students who are unaware they’re learning. Using the puzzle game DragonBox, the Washington State Algebra Challenge rewards students for learning algebra through innovative gameplay.

The competition isn’t even over yet and the goal of 250,000 problems solved is long-past achieved.

Pointless (and Badgeless) Gamification

If you’ve ever raised a skeptical brow at the notion that badges and points were a magic bullet solution to engaging communities, this article is for you. Not because I’m going to change your mind. But because I’m going to wholeheartedly agree with you – and hopefully give you some ammo to win your next argument with that newly-minted “Certified Gamification Expert.”

Objective Logistics Rewards Wait Staff Employees for Good Services

Americans tend to eat about five meals per week in restaurants. But how often do you go to a restaurant and vow never to return because of bad service? Some food service industry businesses fail based on the personalities of their servers rather than the quality of the food being served. For the business owners, this can feel like an unearned failure, which is why it’s important to make good decisions when hiring employees.

And this isn’t some tightly-kept trade secret. Customers know this and business owners know this. Customers are more likely to return if they’re treated well. Therefore, business owners — especially those in the service industry — have a remarkable incentive to retain highly performing service workers by rewarding them with desirable shifts and, especially in the case of food service, more generous financial bonuses. Objective Logistics, an innovative company in the broad category of gamification startups, is offering a service to restaurants that rates and manages servers in the food service industry.

One Player’s Journey of Gaming Memecube at GSummit SF 2013

Maybe you noticed my Twitter feed blowing up over 2 days in the middle of April. I didn’t count but I’m told there were well over 100 tweets in that brief period of time. While my followers should be used to booms when I hit a conference, this was definitely another level.

The reason for my tweet-binge was Memecube. Memecube is an interesting twist on the usual session hashtags; a conference exclusive Twitter tool. Only attendees were told the URL needed to access the system; in it was the conference schedule. After checking in to a session, you only see tweets from others who are also using Memecube and have checked in and new tweets auto-populated with the speakers’ Twitter handle & the GSummit hashtag. This meant, despite GSummit becoming the #1 trending hashtag on twitter during the conference, we did not see the usual assault of the bimbots. Additionally we didn’t have to try to separate our session from all the others to tweet or retweet something relevant, and the overall system was just easier to use. I cannot think of something the DreamForce Conference needed more.

Ross Smith on Engaging Quality Assurance Teams at Microsoft

The Gamification Revolution is the only live gamification webcast featuring Gabe Zichermann and fellow gamification experts every week. Join us and have all of your gamification questions answered by these experts.

This past week’s guest was Ross Smith, Director of Test at Microsoft. Ross Smith was responsible for the creation of the language quality assurance game, making the process significantly faster and more effective. Learn more about Ross’ current projects as a part of 42projects‘ management innovation team by watching Gabe Zichermann’s full interview with Ross.

Washing Your Hands Has Never Been (This) Fun

The New York Times recently wrote an interesting piece about the importance of hand-washing in hospitals. It turns out that only 30% of medical professionals wash their hands appropriately, leading to billions of dollars in downstream costs from readmissions, malpractice and secondary infections. While the exact reasons for poor adherence are the subject of speculation, a number of companies have jumped into the fray to try and solve the problem. Their solutions often rest heavily on gamification.

The 10th Annual Games for Change Festival Launches in NYC from June 17 – 19

Do you like gaming? Do you enjoy new and innovative ideas that can better our world? Of course you do! It’s time to check out the 10th Anniversary Games for Change Festival at New World Stages in New York City June 17th – 19th.

The event is created and hosted by Games for Change (G4C) with the mission to promote social change through gaming. This international conference unites gaming professionals of different backgrounds from around the world ranging from commercial gaming to academia with the shared goal of bettering tomorrow. “The story of the Games for Change Festival is the story of how digital games have evolved, growing from an audience of 40 in 2004 to more than 10,000 attendees on-site and online,” said Michelle Byrd and Asi Burak, Co-Presidents of Games for Change. This year’s event aims to be the biggest and best one yet.

Farm Defenders is a Gates-Funded Training Game for Actual Farmers

As the worldwide agricultural market becomes increasingly commoditized, the existence of a traditional farmer is becoming more and more scarce. However, many rural villages in Africa still require the skills of a trained farmer in order to support their local economy and community. We’ve reported on one community in Kyrgyz who has used a Farmville-esque game to support local farm operations but Fast Company reports on a new game supported by the Gates Foundation that aims to support these communities through learning. Farm Defenders is a hyperrealistic simulation training game that will be used as a tool for training extension workers, which are government-contracted consultants who teach villagers scientific knowledge through farming.

3 Mobile Apps for the Gamification of Energy Conservation

It’s important to recycle and reduce consumption and turn off the water while brushing teeth, but who wants to sort trash? Who wants to go around the house making sure all the light bulbs are off? If you make it a game, you create a situation where people actually want to use less power, and some cases, you could even generate more power. There are a number of mobile apps for iOS and Android that aims to make the whole act of conserving energy a little easier. Here are three applications aimed at encouraging eco-friendly behavior.

SAP Database Tech Has Been Mashed With CRYENGINE3

The German consulting company IDS Scheer won 2nd place in the finals of the recent SAP HANA Partner Race, a contest showcasing applications based on SAP’s in-memory technology HANA. What was especially compelling with the IDS Scheer demo was the usage of the well-known German game-studio’s CryTek game engine CRYENGINE3. CryTek, know for their blockbuster games from the Crysis-Series, provides a game engine that game-developers can use and built their own game.

Why Gamification Design Should be Individual-Focused

While there are many benefits to gamification and many businesses are using this practice to make their website more engaging, the methods used by practicing businesses could often be more effective. Many businesses who integrate game dynamics within their company are often too focused on a corporate level, rather than the gamification of individuals. Because people play games for their own enjoyment, gamification that is too general is often ineffective due to its irrelevance to customers or employees.