Games and Meaningful Play
What is a game? What makes it fun? How can you design a game to provide a meaningful and rewarding experience? Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals by Katie Salen Tekinba and Eric Zimmerman is a great blend of theory and practical application and helps us understand the importance of “gameplay” – the emotional relationship […]
Meaningful Play and a Simulation of the Federal Reserve’s FOMC
In Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals (2003), Salen and Zimmerman highlight the importance of significant interaction for developing a wide range of compelling games, simulations, and role-playing experiences. They argue that good games produce “meaningful play” for its participants and point to the relationship between actions they take and the outcomes that result in successful game experiences. The concept of meaningful play, while evasive at times, provides a useful starting point for analyzing the effectiveness of the FOMC simulation.