Nora talks to Seth Priebatsch, chief Ninja at Scvngr. The mobile startup is trying to consciously develop the game layer on top of the real world. Seth says it’s something that is, in fact, already happening. The trouble is it is not being done well. And the potential to influence human behaviour is enormous. A shorter version of this interview will air on an upcoming episode of Spark, but you can hear the full, uncut interview below, or download the MP3. [runs 15:14]
What are your thoughts on the use of game dynamics in daily life?
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I haven't listened to the interview yet but I'm immiediately remindind of the Vernor Vinge novel "Rainbow's End". Set in 2025 idea of overlaying VR onto reality is fully realized with contact lenses that are also displays. A very interesting novel with a very plausible look at our future.
I vote for neural flora, personally. Surely we can engineer some and infect ourselves..
I know certain areas where having a game layer would work well.
Given the fragmented nature of a lot of news media, I've heard an idea about people becoming "branded explainers" or "leveled news users", where people who are particularly knowledgeable and well researched about certain news stories can display their levels and gain some authority in helping to explain often unclear or abridged news stories to other people. This could be done to make up for the failing nature of a lot of local/global journalism, which have constraints on time or word space to offer a bigger picture. Something like "I am LVL 15 on topics regarding free-market fundamentalism, I can give you the jist about what it is and what it does" or "I am a LVL 31 on topics regarding the middle east, I know quite a bit, so ask me any questions you may have" or even a game-breaking "I am a LVL 72 on topics regarding how useless the news media are; give me a microphone and I'll put a conglomerate out of business."
The problem is, such items like that are probably better fitted for the social layer even though they still use game mechanics. It's iffy.
As a game designer I'm more worried about how the game layer might actually be implemented. There are many different types of games people can play, so having a centralized specific game layer might get boring after a while, then nobody would want to play. If not handled correctly (and given the state of games journalism, it won't) the game layer they're after can really defeat its own purpose.
(I'm actually a LVL 36 on useless news media. Still grinding anyway.)
Check out "blast theory" (http://www.blasttheory.co.uk/bt/index.php) they have been making interesing games played in real-life using GPS, phones, SMS etc.. for years. This is happening in the interactive art world, rather than what sounds like a commercial product from scvngr.
I've seen some of the Blast Theory stuff and it's very cool. I agree that some of the most interesting work is being done by artists. I'd love to know more about what's going on at your alma mater, SFU.
I was enjoying this podcast right up until the false choice example. Doubtless this makes me a bit of a pedant (shoot me) but the book was not Freakonomics but rather Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely and the pricing example wasn't the Wall Street Journal but The Economist. I would hate to think of people rushing out to buy the overrated (IMHO) Freakonomics instead of Ariely's excellent book.