A variation of the Unit Exercise for the Digital Games chapter.
For this exercise, consider some aspect of your post-quarantine/post-pandemic life that you want to develop. Imagine that you are creating a game app for others to share in this gamification to achieve certain goals. There is an app called Zombie Run which creates imaginary zombies that chase you on a map and with sound effects, so that you maybe run faster or at least make your exercise routine fun. The question you should address for your app is: How will the app use digital gamification to achieve goals?
1. GOAL: Run 9 consecutive miles
2. INCREMENTS: Add one mile every week, eventually leading into 9 weeks for a 9-mile-run.
3. Every Thursday of the week will count as the the formal “level” or rated period where a mile will be added to the previous week’s mile count.
4. If you spent the majority of your weekly goal running instead of walking you will be granted a 2x experience boost. So, during your week 1 rating period you should accumulate .6 miles running out of the 1 mile total. For the week 2 rating period you should run 1.1 miles out of 2 if you want to qualify for the reward. You will not be penalized or granted further experience if you run more than the goal for that week.
5. You will create an avatar, name, and customize it via mobile application. The more mileage you accrue, the more experience your avatar gains and the more customization becomes available to you through a cosmetic shop which is locked behind avatar levels.
6. The interface would work similarly to the Pokemon Go app as far as displaying a real-time projection of your avatar on a map and watching it run the exact same route you choose to run – minus the random Pokemon pop-ups that occur.
7. The challenge is overcoming physical torment via palatable gaming app and eventually being able to overcome a 9 mile run in one session.
You will have the choice of approach and customization for your given avatar. You will not be expected to sprint or even run your miles in their entirety, you can take breaks and pause whenever you like, so long as you still run the majority of your mile instead of walking it.
Your Avatar will grow and appear more to your likeness the more you level it up through mileage.
There is always a chance of failure when putting your body to the test. Will this week be a suitable week to cash in on your 2x experience bonus or will it be a rest week?
You can add friends/avatar via social media connection or anonymously through proximity options. You can compare avatar appearances and accolades based on previous runs.
I think the application will be fun and fulfilling through the social and progression aspects of the game. I think it would be beneficial to the user to see tangible process being made on two fronts – one in the form of your avatar and one in the form of your own endurance being built up from mile 1 all the way up to mile 9.