We carried out several activities during the course of the project, first to frame the problem and plan interventions and training, then to implement the planned interventions according to the project's aims and methodology, and lastly to collect the lessons learned and plan end-of-project dissemination and communication activities.
First, we started with a survey of educational video games, and how games are used by educators. This action resulted in i) a first conference publication providing a review of the academic literature and state of the art of educational video games, and ii) a number of interviews with educators interested in educational video games. We approached the educators who had an interest in video games and using games as educational interventions. We asked them informations about their educational fields, their educational practices, and how they see, and use, video games in their educational work. We collected several responses across different educational settings, both academic and non-academic, and gathered a fairly rich and nuanced picture which contributed to inform and guide the game design activities. At the same time, we performed a survey of the academic literature as well as the state of the art in educational video games, which led to a first conference publication reviewing the literature and state of the art, and proposing the EduGames project as an approach to attack the problem.
We proceeded with the design and implementation of two video games.
1. "Cash or Card?" is a cashier simulation that deals with issues around the use of cash and electronic payments. In many countries, the adoption of electronic payments has increased, sparking varied reactions, from worries about the costs and opportunities of the different payment methods, to concerns surrounding the utility of cash for certain demographics, to full-blown conspiracy theories about population control and freedom limitation the COVID-19 pandemic. The game focuses on presenting the opposing arguments for and against using each payment method, accompanied by accessory information about costs, risks, and opportunities. The goal is to allow the players to explore the topic in as neutral a way as possible so that they can reflect on the two alternatives and the consequences of each method.
2. "The Journalist" is an investigative journalism simulation that deals with issues of misrepresentation of data and the reliability of information sources. Taking the role of a journalist, the player is tasked with composing a number of articles for a weekly magazine, drawing information from a variety of sources of which they have to ascertain the reliability based on the way in which they present information. The player is free to choose their strategy, whether that means increasing or decreasing their magazine's reputation, and managing their own income stream. By giving the players this choice, they are encouraged to reflect on the way the truth is constructed through factual or distorted information, and on the incentives for going either way.
"Cash or Card?" was designed by the project's PI based on information collected online and in real-life conversations with shopkeepers and customers. The implementation was done by the PI alone as a baseline proof-of-concept against which to compare the multi-disciplinary collaborative approach involving domain experts advocated by the EduGames project. In line with the goals of the project, "The Journalist" was instead designed and developed by a team composed by game designers, a science teacher, and a game and HCI researcher. The difference in focus and direction of the two design processes is clear and confirms the expectations set out in the project's proposal that working with domain and industry experts would make creating educational video games that also work as entertainment products easier and more effective. An initial reflection on the two games, as well as some usage data analysis for "Cash or Card?" resulted in a second conference publication.
