Video Games and Games-Based Learning
A game is a structured form of play, often undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Whether it’s an abstract video game or a traditional board game, or even something as simple as a jigsaw puzzle, a game is a pursuit in which players compete against one another for a quantifiable outcome, while working within a set of rules that have been agreed upon by all involved. This structure, intentionality, and ludological agreement make games the basis for many of the applications of games-based learning.
A video game is a form of electronic entertainment that uses an artificial computer environment to recreate and simulate a fictional world. Video games have been a staple of popular culture for decades, and their influence on our cultural heritage has grown exponentially since the mid-nineteenth century. They are now one of the most profitable entertainment industries in the world, producing both massively multiplayer online games and single-player titles with high production values.
As a result, the definition of a video game is continually evolving and changing, with new games pushing the boundaries of what we consider to be a game. It’s not surprising, then, that it can be difficult to give a concrete definition of what a video game is and why it matters to our academic field.
The difficulty of defining a video game has led to numerous theories about their nature and meaning. The most popular, however, stem from the philosophy of education, examining how games can help us learn. Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman define a game as, “a system in which players knowingly compete against each other or a common game mechanic to complete an abstract challenge that elicits an emotional response from them.” This is closely aligned with the definition of games-based learning, as it is the goal-directed activity that is pursued through inefficient means.
Other scholars have defined games in more general terms, such as Roger Caillois’s take that any fun, separate, uncertain and non-productive activity ruled by rules could be considered a game. Tracey Fullerton builds on this concept, identifying the formal systems and elements of games and asserting that they are structured to create a series of unequal outcomes for players.
It is important to note, though, that useful definitions are ones that fit the purposes of their use and take previous research into account. It’s possible to make a useful game definition without considering this work, but it’s much harder and more likely to run into problems that have already been solved by others.
Regardless of how it’s ultimately defined, it’s clear that video games have become an essential part of our daily lives and that they have a significant role to play in the future of education. The challenge is to find ways to incorporate games into our classrooms in ways that will provide the most value for students. This will require an open mind to new ways of learning, a willingness to explore the possibilities for games in our schools and districts, and the courage to try out new approaches, even if they’re not perfect at first.
