Information Flow in Games Drives Engagement

@F2P_COwww.f2p.co /freetoplayf2p
https://www.linkedin.com/in/javier-velasquez-game/
BEM
Information Centric Gamiﬁcation
Javier Velásquez - Game Designer
Ana María Velásquez - PhD Human Development

Increased attention produced by
stress and interest.
Stress is produced by changing
stimuli in our environment, after
passing through our attention fil-
ters.
Optimal level for engagement:
Flow theory
Why should I understand Information
for Gamiﬁcation Design?
What is
engagement?
Stress Meter!

A thing that arouses activity or energy in so-
meone or something; a spur or incentive.
An interesting and exciting quality.
Interesting Quality
DATA
What is
an stimulus?
Why should I understand Information
for Gamiﬁcation Design?
Changing Da....
(typing...)

Real World objective properties
and facts. Can’t be lost, but can
change or be modified.
Patterns and relationships that
can drive conclusions when
data is placed in a context.
Data 1: Yesterday I had 2 siblings.
Data 2: Today I have 3 siblings.
“1 Sibling was born today, but I
don’t know the gender”
Data vs Information: cognition
DATA INFORMATION
Cognition
processing

The source of information.
Dynamic or interesting
data creates engagement
as it forces to update our
bases for interpretation.
“The rating has decreased. I
need to find out why and
design a plan for improvement”
“This product is highlighted.
¿Should I check out why it has
this icon or should I continue
browsing?”
Data vs Information: decision making
DATA INFORMATION

¿Should check out why it has
browsing?”
High Stakes:
“We are losing sells and are
risking losing valuable
clients!”
High Energy
“This will take a lot of effort.
Probably will have to work
on this for the next month”
Low Energy:
“Clicking this link is easy
and painless. I’m already on
the page”.
Low Stakes:
“I don’t need this product, I
have no need of interacting
with it”.
Probability of interacting with a call-to-action
INFORMATION STAKES ENERGY

¿Should check out why it has
browsing?”
High Pressure
“I have my partners on my
neck and the rating is de-
creasing fast!!”
Low Interest:
“I have never liked working
on this product. I would
rather do something else.”
High Interest:
“The picture of the product
seems great and it seems to
have some nice features.”
Low Pressure:
“I have never needed this
kind of product and will not
need it in the near future.”
Probability of interacting with a call-to-action
INFORMATION PRESSURE INTEREST

Knowledge in this context
is defined as the mental
map created by experiences
and psychological needs,
which helps us decodify in-
formation and make deci-
sions.
Information and Knowledge
PRESSURE
INTEREST
STAKES
ENERGY
Psychological/
Physiological
Needs
MEMORIES BIASES
Natural irrational
interpretations of the data
7 Drivers BEM
and biological needs
Models of reality based
on past experiences

Updates the knowledge
map or confirms the current
knowledge map making re-
lationships stronger.
INFORMATION
Information and Knowledge
Psychological/
Physiological
Needs
MEMORIES BIASES
Information activates several biases which
can make some decision-making predictable
Information is processed through the lense
of motivational needs and
produce emotional reactions.
New information creates new memories or
reinforce previous ones

A contained micro system of rules
that allows information flow.
Players have to react to changing
data, which updates the informa-
tion available in the game status.
And Gamiﬁcation... or Game Design?
What is
a game?
Games are in constant flow, which creates engagement!

Game’s information flow optimizes learning
Choices architecture
optimizes trial and error
Updates the knowledge
and drivers map
Gives partial information
to allow evaluation and
interpretation.
Forces working memory
by providing new challenges
GAME STATUS
GAMEOBJECTIVE(GO)
SOCIALGAME
CALL-TO-ACTION DECISION
MAKING
INFORMATION
ANALYSIS
AUTONOM
Y
FILTERS & PATTERNS
GAME ACTIONS
PRESSURES FOR ACTION
BEHAVIOR
ACTION
KNOWLEDGE
MAP
DRIVERS
EVALUATION
(GO)
PURPOSE
EXPERIENCE
LEARNING
EXPECTANCY
UTILITY
UTILITY
MASTERY
DISCOVERY
RELATEDNESS
EFFICIENCY
DOMINANT
INFORMATION FLOW
RELEVANCY
CHANGE OF STATE
FEEDBACK
IF NEEDED
NOTIFICATION
MEANINGFUL

Information Flow is updated through an interface!
How many hits can I withstand?
Screenshots (social)
How to change weapons and shields
Forest allows for hunting
among other events
Landmarks for
spatial reference and
of mechanical importance
Interest point
and compass
Blocked or
dangerous path
Character reveals
equipment information
Denotes difficulty and
challenge
Partial information
drives discovery and interest
Everything is
relevant in
the game
interface
for solving
the problem
Temperature can
damage the charatcter
Sound affects enemy reactions
ans stealth mechanics
Time and weather
based events

Feedback and notiﬁcations are used when needed
Effect and duration
Notification
Signals high damage
and danger
Signals high resistance
or strategy neededCharacter reacts to
blow (feedback) to show
that it took damage
Position denotes
Game Action cooldown
and speed of attack.
Enemy’s life remaining and focus arrow.
Creates goal urgency, performance and direction.
Games are
not just about
feedback,
but well
designed
feedback
is crucial.
Indication of magical attribute
Filled hearts in battle
signals mastery

Interfaces organize information flow through static data
Country color matches
a disease color to convey
which disease spreads here.
Infection rate counter
that shows how many
infection cards a
player must draw.
Infected cities have a higher
probability of reappering.
Regions are relevant for
game mechanics
Paths show disease spreading
and movement possibilities for
players.
Spaces for city upgrades
Months for game progression indicator
Space for player cards.
Cards remaining on deck are
key information in
gameplay.
Color of disease is
relevant for categorization.
Icon provides experiencial
information, not useful in the game.
This counter shows the
level of disease outbreaks.
After 8 outbreaks, players
lose.
Infographic for quick reference
on city statuses.
Mission slots for dynamic
missions.
Each disease can be mutated,
which is shown in this spaces

To understand the Game Status,
player’s need to know how to
read the information.
Learning to read information
correctly allows for better deci-
sion making.
Players learn to read the interfa-
ce as they interact with it and
see how the information flows.
Reading and Understanding Information
Without understanding, this is just DATA

Information flow creates and shows Conflict
Danger! These cities
are on the brink of an
outbreak!
Yellow can be our
doom!
We are about to lose!
The tension rises!
We still have some cards left,
but if this deck is
exhausted, we lose!
WHAT SHOULD WE DO?
Black is in mid-danger.
Must watch out but
is not urgent.
The blue disease is
more contained.
Let’s filter it out for
now.

The Player provides
meaning to the information.
Playful or serious or both?
What can you infer from the
caps, the color and the admiration marks
from this sentence?
Language and Form are Relevant
Semantics

In the order of words, poetry
you can find (or Yoda).
Gamification provides the
language of games to tap
into user expectations and
create mindsets.
Different languages create
different experiences and
expectations.
Mastery, Achievement and EnergyStorytelling and horror
Beyond Aesthetics: Language creates a Mindset

The rules and algorithms that allow
or prevent information flow.
They create
a scope for player actions.
RULES are optimized for experience, not for manipulation.
Mechanics are triggered by player
interactions, by other mechanical
events or by data conditions.
The rules of information flow: Mechanics
What are
Mechanics?

Rules create emergent strategies
through learning to understand
the systemic relationships they
create for information flow.
The rules of information flow: Mechanics
Mechanics are
the engine of
information flow!

Knowing all the rules allows you to build prediction
models, which can help or lead you to take choices.
“If black plays, black wins”.
But the complexity of the information model and having
partial information allows for hypothesis and discovery.
“If whte plays, can she win?”.
Prediction and Discovery: Complete, Complex and Partial Information

Mechanics are designed with a goal in mind (goal-oriented), but some goals can be“suggested”
by the information design and others are useful for the main goal.
Game Goals and Arbitrary Goals
Arbitrary Goal:
Reach the highest combo
and damage
Arbitrary Goal:
Do it in the less time
as possible
Useful Goal:
Level up the character
Arbitrary Goal:
Use as less Skill Points as possible
MAIN GOAL:
Defeat the critter
Notification of threat
MAIN GOAL:
Mantain your character alive
Useful Goal:
Level up your characters.
Arbitrary Goal:
Have as many
power ups as
possible
Useful Goal:
Make as
much damage
as possible
Arbitrary Goal:
Defeat the critter losing as
less HP as possible.
Goals create
multiple milestones
to keep the player
engaged.

To be a better Gamification designer, you need to decompose the way a game designer thinks
about information flow, interfaces, tension and mechanics to create experience. Understanding
semantics and information design help understand how the player gives meaning and creates
emotion around your system.
Conclusion and challenge questions
Waze points mean anything to their users?
How the smart route notification satisfies
intrinsic needs? Why is the city the adversary?
Why does ETA, distance and time remaining
convey the same information in different format?
How they create focus on the Time saved? Could
it be done better?
Is the design playful, serious or both? How can
it strike a balance?

Javier Velásquez
javier@f2p.co
YOU WIN

Information Flow in Games Drives Engagement

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Information Flow in Games Drives Engagement