From Game Design Elements to Gamefulness: Defining “Gamification”
📜 Abstract
Recent years have seen a rapid proliferation of mass-market consumer software that takes inspiration from video games. Usually summarized as “gamification”, this trend connects to a sizeable body of existing concepts and research in human-computer interaction and game studies, such as serious games, pervasive games, alternate reality games, or playful design. However, it is not clear how “gamification” relates to these, whether it denotes a novel phenomenon, and how to define it. Thus, in this paper we investigate “gamification” and the historical origins of the term in relation to precursors and similar concepts. It is suggested that “gamified” applications provide insight into novel, gameful phenomena complementary to playful phenomena. Based on our research, we propose a definition of “gamification” as the use of game design elements in non-game contexts.
✨ Summary
Summary
The paper examines the emergence of “gamification” in digital media and situates it within earlier work on serious games, pervasive games, alternate-reality games, playful design, and human-computer interaction. It argues that gamification identifies a distinct but previously under-specified group of phenomena concerned with gamefulness, gameful interaction, and gameful design. Gamefulness is distinguished from playfulness: playfulness is associated with the broader, more open-ended qualities of playing, whereas gamefulness concerns the structured, goal-oriented qualities of gaming.
The authors define gamification as “the use of game design elements in non-game contexts.” The definition deliberately excludes the use of complete games for non-entertainment purposes, as in serious games, and distinguishes game design from the broader use of game technologies or game-related practices. The paper also argues that gamification need not be digital and need not be restricted to particular user motivations or application domains.
Game design elements are organized along five levels of abstraction: game interface design patterns; game design patterns and mechanics; game design principles and heuristics; game models; and game design methods and processes. This framework allows gamification research to address both concrete elements, such as badges, levels, and leaderboards, and more abstract design knowledge, such as challenges, clear goals, models of game experience, and playtesting practices. The authors present the definition as a conceptual and terminological foundation rather than as evidence that particular game elements reliably produce specific behavioral outcomes.
Influence
The definition became a central reference point for subsequent gamification research. Later reviews explicitly adopt or discuss it when distinguishing gamification from serious games and when analyzing game elements. A scoping review of 280 gamification papers used the problem of inconsistent game-element definitions as a motivation for developing a more detailed taxonomy, identifying points, badges, and leaderboards as the most prevalent elements. (doi.org) A systematic meta-review covering gamification, serious games, and game-based learning likewise uses the paper’s distinction between complete games and selected game components while mapping 118 theoretical foundations used in the field. (doi.org) Other systematic reviews of engagement, education, and publication trends cite the paper as a foundational definition and use it to structure empirical research on gamified applications. (sciencedirect.com)