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- Herausgeber: Packt Publishing
- Kategorie: Wissenschaft und neue Technologien
- Sprache: Englisch
Are you looking at implementing gamification techniques for your business and wondering where to get a complete rundown of all the tricks and techniques? Well, you have come to the right place!
This book will start right from the basics such as gameplay elements and their functionalities before gradually moving onto creating your first gamification project from scratch.
You’ll be given the tools and shown how to perform various techniques for creating gamified applications in different contexts. Finally, you will implement various game elements into Unity, publish your own task management application, and get to know the best practices and approaches when designing gamified experiences.
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Seitenzahl: 348
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016
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Table of Contents
Gamification with Unity 5.x
Gamification with Unity 5.x
Copyright © 2016 Packt Publishing
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embedded in critical articles or reviews.
Every effort has been made in the preparation of this book to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, the information contained in this book is sold without warranty, either express or implied. Neither the author, nor Packt Publishing, and its dealers and distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly by this book.
Packt Publishing has endeavored to provide trademark information about all of the companies and products mentioned in this book by the appropriate use of capitals. However, Packt Publishing cannot guarantee the accuracy of this information.
First published: November 2016
Production reference: 1231116
Published by Packt Publishing Ltd.
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ISBN 978-1-78646-348-7
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Credits
Author
Lauren S. Ferro
Copy Editor
Safis Editing
Reviewer
Charles Palmer
Project Coordinator
Ritika Manoj
Commissioning Editor
Amarabha Banerjee
Proofreader
Safis Editing
Acquisition Editor
Larissa Pinto
Indexer
Rekha Nair
Content Development Editor
Sachin Karnani
Graphics
Abhinash Sahu
Technical Editor
Sachit Bedi
Production Coordinator
Melwyn Dsa
About the Author
Lauren S. Ferro is a gamification consultant and designer of game and game-like applications. She has worked, designed, consulted, and implemented strategies for a range of different purposes, including professional development, recommendation systems, and educational games. She is an active researcher in the area of gamification, player profiling, and user-centered game design. Lauren runs workshops both for the general public and companies that focus on designing user-centered games and game-like applications. She is also the creator of a game design resource, Gamicards, which is a prototyping tool for both games and game-like experiences, which is centered on player’s preferences for game elements and mechanics.
She is passionate about the future of games and the technologies surrounding them, as well as their potential to improve the lives people.
When she is not playing or creating games, you can find her flying kites, creating music, or whipping up a storm in the kitchen.
Whether directly or indirectly, it takes a combined effort to create something wonderful. For this reason, I would like to thank the following for their contributions towards the development and completion of this book: Packt Publishing and everyone involved in publication of this book. Thank you for providing me with the opportunity to write about gamification. It has been a fantastic journey and I have enjoyed being a part of the community. In particular, I would like to thank Sachin Karnani for his help through the development of this book. Your comments, suggestions, and edits through each stage have helped to make this book great. The reviewers who have taken the time to read this book and provide suggestions and feedback to improve it for the future readers. Francesco Sapio, for his help and support throughout the process of writing this book. His knowledge, experience and expertise has been more than valuable. My parents, who have done everything to support me and for always believing in me. Thank you for being my inspiration and motivation in life, and the reason that I entered into the world of games. Lastly, to you, the reader. Thank you for entering the world of gaming, and allowing me the opportunity to provide you with information and resources that will take you on many adventures in creating your own gaming experiences. Don’t just be a gamer, be a game changer.
About the Reviewer
Charles Palmer is a faculty member and administrator at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, a STEM-focused, private, four-year comprehensive university dedicated to ensuring institutional access for underrepresented students and linking learning and research to practical outcomes.
As the Executive Director of the Center for Advanced Entertainment and Learning Technologies, Professor Palmer oversees the design and development of ventures in new and emerging technologies, serves as Program Lead for the undergraduate Interactive Media program, is an adviser to the Learning Technology Masters of Science program, coordinates a high school video game academy, and mentors university students on research projects in the fields of augmented/virtual reality, mobile computing, web application development, digital media, and interactive games.
As a technologist and public speaker, Charles uses virtual reality, 3D printing, gamification, interactive storytelling, social media, and simulations to discuss how training and performance can be improved with the inclusion of the latest technological advances.
Professor Palmer is also a co-author of the recently released Alternate Reality Games: Gamification for Performance, available from CRC Press and Amazon.
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Preface
As you can guess from the title of the book, this book is designed to teach you about implementing gamification into Unity. However, this isn’t any ordinary how-to guide. It will give you not only a strong theoretical foundation of what gamification is, but also how it can be implemented to achieve different results. It discusses motivation, reward schedules, feedback loops, and how these all impact the end user. In addition, this book will also guide you through the process of game development from concept to implementation, including testing, iterating, marketing, and finally publishing.
What this book covers
Chapter 1, The Anatomy of Games, explains the different components of gameplay and their functionalities. We will explore what games are made up of–the atoms of gaming experiences and how they are used.
Chapter 2, Who or What am I? - Understanding the Player, tells the readers that in designing and developing a gamified application, it's very important to study and understand the audience, and how they behave as players. Therefore, in this chapter, the reader will be provided with different tools to specifically engage his target audience. More importantly, the readers will learn how to understand and to design these specific tools inside Unity.
Chapter 3, An Engaged Player is a Happy Player, will discuss ways to provide feedback and reinforcement as well as tracking the progress of the player during their engagement with the application. In addition, it will describe ways to actively engage players throughout the experience.
Chapter 4, An Organized Chaos - Getting Ideas Out of Your Head and on to Paper, will explain how to design a gamified application before starting to create a final version. The reader will learn different and specific techniques for process of creating gamified applications in different contexts, allowing the reader to have more tools to face the challenge. Furthermore, it is also shown how it is possible to use Unity during the process to help the reader to create helpful tools in Unity to generate new ideas.
Chapter 5, Sculpting the Conceptual Beast, shows that having a hard copy of the application the reader has in mind can avoid many restructuring and recording later. Therefore, this chapter introduces a series of tools to the reader for creating a physical prototype of the application. At this stage, the reader will get an idea of how to test it with its target audience to avoid wasting time and programming resources later on in the process. This will also extend what the reader has done in previous chapters, but add more functionality.
Chapter 6, Breathing Life to Your First Creation: Creating and Importing Assets for Your Application!, will show the reader how to gather all the concepts from the previous chapter and get them working together inside Unity. By the end of this chapter the reader will have acquired the right skills to implement all of them inside Unity.
Chapter 7, Get Your Motor Running, will explain to the reader how to implement various game elements into Unity that relate to the project. This provides the basic foundation and practical skills that the reader will need later on when developing the project. Each game element will be provided with a clear explanation of how to create it within Unity.
Chapter 8, Break, Destroy, and Rebuild - The Art of Playtesting and Iteration, will reveal methods of playtesting and iteration, in order to improve the design of their project. It will suggest ways to test, what to look for and what to pay attention to during this stage.
Chapter 9, Graduating Your Project to Completion, will wrap up everything that we have done as part of the project. It will make sure that the project is ready to publish and that the reader has developed all the necessary skills to get it to the final stage. It will also discuss different marketing techniques and approaches to online social networking services to give a gamified application the best possible chance for success across a wide audience.
Chapter 10, Being the Best That You Can Be!, will consider everything together that the reader has learned during the process and make recommendations some of the best practices during the design process and some of the key things to look for.
What you need for this book
Throughout the book we have used Unity 5.x to develop the gamified application. We have also used Adobe Illustrator to complete some of the images. However, it is possible to use any graphics creation program that you feel comfortable with using. In some instances, word processing software is required to create documents, but feel free to use whatever you prefer (for example, Microsoft Word, Adobe InDesign, Open Office). Other than that, the only requirement from you is to bring your imagination and creativity.
Who this book is for
If you are a project manager, game developer, or programmer who wants to create successful end-to-end gamification projects from scratch, then this is the book for you. You do not need any previous experience of working with Unity 5.X. All the details required to make the most of gamifying your projects are provided in the book.
Conventions
In this book, you will find a number of text styles that distinguish between different kinds of information. Here are some examples of these styles and an explanation of their meaning.
Code words in text, database table names, folder names, filenames, file extensions, pathnames, dummy URLs, user input, and Twitter handles are shown as follows: "Mount the downloaded WebStorm-10*.dmg disk image file as another disk in your system."
A block of code is set as follows:
using UnityEngine; using System.Collections; public class BrainstormingTool : MonoBehaviour {New terms and important words are shown in bold. Words that you see on the screen, for example, in menus or dialog boxes, appear in the text like this: "They need to be inside a folder named Editor."
Note
Warnings or important notes appear in a box like this.
Tip
Tips and tricks appear like this.
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Questions
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Chapter 1. The Anatomy of Games
In a world full of work, chores, and just plain boring things, we all must find the time to play. We must allow ourselves to be immerse ourselves within enchanted worlds of fantasy, to explore far-away and uncharted exotic islands throughout mysterious worlds. We may also find hidden treasure while confronting and overcoming some of our worst fears. As we enter utopian and dystopian worlds, mesmerized by the magic of games, we realize anything and everything is possible, and all that we have to do is imagine.
There are many things that are involved in creating this magical places, and in this chapter, we will begin by exploring the following:
Not just pixels and programming
Gaming has an interesting and ancient history. It goes back as far as the ancient Egyptians with a game called Sennet. Long after the reign of the great Egyptian Kings, the ancient Greeks and Romans saw games as a way to display strength and stamina. However, as time has elapsed, games have not only developed from the marble pieces of Sennet or the glittering swords of battles, they have also adapted to changes in media: from stone to paper, and from paper to technology. We have seen the rise and development of physical games (for example, table and card games) to games that need us to physically move our characters by using our bodies and peripherals (Playstation Move, WiiMote), to interact with the game environment (Wii Sports, Heavy Rain). So now, not only do we have the ability to create 3D virtual worlds with virtual reality, we can enter their worlds as well. Just like the following image, which is from Dungeons and Dragons, games don't have to take on a digital form, they can also be physical.
Dungeons and Dragons board with figurines and dice
Finding your preferred type
Now, let's take it a step further and observe the different types of games that exist. There are games to teach, to train, to escape reality with, and games to transform ourselves. As we can see in the following image, there are tons of games that we can play, and across varying platforms as well!
Many different types of game that are available
To begin, you have your games for entertainment. They may have some other elements such as some accurate historic facts (Assassin's Creed, Civilization), but their main purpose is to entertain us. They can exist across a range of different genres from shooter (Call of Duty) to adventure (Fable) and can be played either alone (Alone in the Dark, Alan Wake, Metro 2033) or with company both near and far (Word of Warcraft, Dota 2, Guild Wars 2). Other genres include:
Tip
To get a better understanding about different types of genres, try to play a few games from each, albeit on consoles, PC, or mobile. If you don't have a lot of time to spare, check out gameplay videos and see how each genre differs in gameplay.
Playing to learn
The structure of these types of game is what gameplay is molded around. Ultimately, these games aim to teach a concept (or many) to players in more interesting ways than reading the same information from a textbook. In some instances, you will have an educational game, where designers entwine the learning objectives into an abstracted reality; and then there are games that stylize reality.
Minecraft
Minecraft is an open-world sandbox type of game where the player can create basically anything that they put their mind to. Just as we can see in the following screenshot, the world of Minecraft is made up of blocks that the player must collect in order to create range of things from houses to the Enterprise. While this game was not necessarily designed to be used as part of a formal educational environment, just that happened. So much so in fact that some schools have integrated it into their lesson plans and curriculum. To this extent, MinecraftEdu which was its educational version (https://education.minecraft.net/), was created in 2011 so that it can better support learning objectives. The main concept for creating MinecraftEdu was so that it could preserve the world of creation that original Minecraft offered while adding elements that enabled it to be effectively used within the classroom. The use of Minecraft and MinecraftEdu has ranged from teaching math concepts to teaching languages.
In-game screenshot of Minecraft
Kerbal Space Program
Kerbal Space Program (www.kerbalspaceprogram.com) allows the player to create their own space program. This starts with the construction of a spacecraft that is not only capable of flying its crew out into space, but also doesn't kill them. In order to do this, the player has a set of different parts, which are then used to build the functional spacecraft. Each piece serves its own function and will affect the way that the spacecraft flies (or doesn't, just like in the following screenshot). Furthermore, the game supports different game modes. For instance, in the Career Mode, the player has the possibility to expand and manage their own Space Center, by completing missions and researching new technologies. Another is the Sandbox mode, where the player can explore the Kerbal universe without restrictions. Finally, the Science mode is a mix between the previous two.
In-game screenshot of Kerbal Space Program with a crashed spaceship
Sid Meier's Civilization
Imagine being Montezuma of the Aztecs, Darius I of Persia, or Augustus Caesar of Rome like in the following screenshot. Can you image taking the role of some of the most famous historical people that we have only read about? Not only this, but also being the person who must guide the development of a civilization from the first settlements, through the bronze and golden ages all the way through the industrial revolution; and then end up putting a man on the moon, whilst maintaining relationships with nearby nations. Simple...right?
In-game screenshot of Augustus Caesar displaying the background history to the player before they embark on creating their own civilization
Sid Meier's Civilization (1991-2016) series are prime examples of how the natural progression of history plays out depending on how the communities develop skills and infrastructure. In Civilization V (www.civilization5.com) the player can take the role of a historic figure such as Napoleon Bonaparte, Augustus Caesar, or Alexander the Great. The player learns about the history behind each of these great leaders and the time in which they held reign over their respective countries and civilizations. However, what needs to be noted is that the player does not take the explicit role of the historical figure, as they play during different historical periods. The player is effectively writing history as a historical character. In this way, it's possible for Augustus Caesar to order the construction of the pyramids of Giza. This sets up the premise for competitive gameplay among systems within the game and among the gaming community. To get their civilization further along quicker, the player needs to utilize the game's systems more effectively.
It is during historic periods of time (for example, golden age, bronze age, and so on) that the player finds out how their actions affect the outcome of the civilization and the choices resulting in progression and outcomes that allow the player to create an understanding about how different actions and solutions affect the development of a civilization.
Stop kidding around, be serious!
Serious games take concepts from reality that we need to learn, and stylize them in a way that is similar to reality. Whether we are learning about running our own business or a new language, the way that we receive information does not need to remain in endless pages of large textbooks or involves copying notes from classroom whiteboards. The monotonous method of learning can be changed, and serious games take this information and present it as part of an immersive and interactive e-learning environment. Fortunately enough, serious games also provide the ability to test out the knowledge that we learn along the way.
America's Army
The game is a FPS published in 2002 by the U.S. Army (www.americasarmy.com) and is branded as a strategic communication device, designed to allow young Americans to virtually explore the Army at their own pace. The game was created to identify player's interests and then to determine if it matches their needs, interests, and abilities with a view to being part of the U.S. Army. In fact, America's Army represents the first large-scale use of game technology by the U.S. government as a platform for strategic communication and the first use of game technology in support of U.S. Army recruiting.
Screenshot of two different environments from America's Army
Foldit
Foldit (www.fold.it) is an online game that is part of an experimental research project developed by the University of Washington's Center for Game Science in collaboration with the UW Department of Biochemistry. Players are required to fold the structures of selected proteins using tools that are provided in the game. We can see an example of how the player learns how such structures are formed, in the following image. Of all the solutions, those that score the highest are then analyzed by researchers, who then determine whether there is a native structural configuration (native state) that can be applied to relevant proteins in the real world. What is useful about Foldit is that scientists can then use these solutions to target, eradicate diseases, and create biological innovations. Some of the many successful case stories include www.scientificamerican.com/article/foldit-gamers-solve-riddle and http://www.nature.com/articles/ncomms12549. You are also encouraged to explore other success stories and news surrounding Foldit.
In-game screenshot of a tutorial part of Foldit
Moonbase Alpha
NASA has once again landed on the moon; however, this time their aim is to colonize, research, and further their exploration. After arriving on the Lunar surface, NASA established a small outpost on the south pole of the moon called Moonbase Alpha (www.nasa.gov/moonbasealpha). Not long after establishing the Moonbase, it became self-sufficient and plans for further expansion were begun.
In Moonbase Alpha, you are an astronaut working to further human expansion and research. However, upon returning from a research expedition, you witness a meteorite impact that cripples the life support capability of the newly established base. With time ticking away with each passing moment, it is up to you and your team to repair (as seen in the following screenshot) and replace equipment in order to restore the oxygen production to the settlement and survive.
Moonbase Alpha requires team coordination along with the use and allocation of your available resources such as robots, rovers, repair tools, and so on. These resources are key to you and your team's overall success and survival. There are several ways that the life support system of the lunar base can be restored. However, you are pressed for time and must work efficiently and effectively, learn from decisions (both good and bad), which are taken in previous gaming sessions. Ultimately, this learning process provides the much needed insight to rise above others on the leaderboard and come out as the ideal astronaut to save you and your team from imminent death in the dark depths of space.
In-game screenshot of the player's avatar (the astronaut) repairing a broken part of the space station
Keeping it real with simulations
Next, there are games that try to emulate reality. These are simulations and they simulate real-world consequences. For example, if you die, you have to start again. They can exist in both fantasy and realistic worlds, but just like real life their consequences are permanent.
Virtual Heroes
Virtual Heroes (www.virtualheroes.com) specializes in 3D simulations that are aimed predominantly towards medical or military training. These are two areas where accurate decisions and fast action can be the difference between living and dying. In reality, it can be dangerous to engage in real scenarios due to the risks that they contain. As a result, it is nearly impossible for new trainees to practice in real-life contexts, and get the much needed skills before heading out on the job. Thankfully, 3D simulated environments (such as those that we can see in the following screenshot) in Virtual Heroes not only offer the space to practice essential skills, but also an environment that contains a higher level of safety where novice personnel can perform various tasks without putting anyone at risk. For example, in emergency room situations, patients are able to interact in simulated scenarios. This process allows for failure, where the student can learn from their mistakes without endangering actual patients. From these experiences, students can be trained to think quickly and make appropriate decisions. As the students progress and develop their skills, the scenarios can be modified so that they present new challenges that offer more opportunities to practice and use the previously developed skills. On the backend of these programs, data can be collected, which can provide insights in to how well or badly students perform. As a result, instructors are able to identify problematic areas that will then help to inform them about what areas to focus on when designing future tasks.
In-game screenshot from Virtual Heroes displaying two different types of environment and situation that a player can face during the game
SimCity
SimCity (www.simcity.com) is a rare example of a long-term multiplayer simulation game. In all the other games of the same series, the player has to manage a city. In SimCity, the player controls an entire region that could contain up to 16 cities with different specializations that the player has to control at the same time. Also, they have the possibility to interact with other players' cities. Both a collaborative or competitive behavior can be adopted by the player to guide them during the decision making process. There are no right or wrong choices, but all of them have consequences. For example, building a casino will bring tourists, and therefore money as well, but it will encourage criminal activity. As a result, your city will become more dangerous and it may ultimately affect your population levels. In addition, universities can research new technologies, but they are very expensive to maintain in comparison to other types of buildings and facilities.
