<figure><img src="image_281.png" /><figcaption>PAULINE
THÉVENOT
FRANCE
CREM/AKAWEB</figcaption></figure>

VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Doctorante CIFRE.

Laboratoire : Centre de recherche sur les médiations (CREM). Interdisciplinaire, le CREM analyse entre autres thématiques et objets, les pratiques de production, création, réception et relations médiatiques.

Entreprise : AKAWEB, une agence web nancéenne. Par le web-design et l'ingénierie informatique, Akaweb élaboré et réalise des outils marketing internet performants : réseaux sociaux professionnels, e-commerce, applications smartphones, intranet, services clients...

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Doctorante interrogeant les SG.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Enfant, j'ai découvert les jeux vidéo par les jeux éducatifs. Dix ans plus tard, je réalise un mémoire en communication autour des SG informatifs, recherche que je poursuis en doctorat. Depuis un an, je continue donc ma réflexion sur les serious games avec un accent sur les mécanismes ludiques, sur comment faire jeu dans un contexte autre que le divertissement.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

J'utilise actuellement la définition proposée par Alvarez et Djaouti dans *Introduction au Serious Game* (2010). J'en retiens principalement l'aspect sérieux initial du SG, la cohérence entre les aspects ludiques et sérieux, l'utilisation de ressorts ludiques et l'éloignement du divertissement. L'aspect sérieux initial et l'éloignement du divertissement permettent d'établir une frontière entre le serious game et

d'autres objets et pratiques voisines : jeu vidéo, Serious Gaming... Les ressorts ludiques sont à mon sens, ce qui permet de faire jeu : une structure de type jeu, des marqueurs indiquant que l'objet est jouable ainsi que l'expérience ludique de l'utilisateur. Enfin, la cohérence des aspects sérieux et ludiques est un enjeu majeur du SG en ce qu'elle mêle des points de vue traditionnellement considérés comme opposés : bien entendu jeu et sérieux mais aussi l'objectivité du commanditaire et l'expérience subjective de l'utilisateur.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

programme informatique
jeu
utilité
connaissances
compétences
échanges

VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

Capture (2012)
We Topia (2012)
Keys of a Gamespace (2011)

<figure><img src="image_282.png" /><figcaption>Keys of a Gamespace</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_283.png" /><figcaption>ANDRÉ
TRICOT</figcaption></figure>

FRANCE
CNRS ET UNIV.
TOULOUSE 2

VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Professeur de psychologie.

Au sein du laboratoire Cognition Langues Langage et Ergonomie (UMR CNRS et université de Toulouse 2), je suis responsable d'une équipe d'une vingtaine de chercheurs, qui étudient les apprentissages mis en œuvre dans des environnements informatiques ou mixtes. Nous étudions en particulier les processus de motivation, de régulation de l'apprentissage par le système ou par les apprenants, ainsi que les difficultés rencontrées par ces derniers. Notre approche est ergonomique : nous cherchons à améliorer les environnements d'apprentissage.

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Je m'intéresse au SG comme étant un cas particulier d'environnement informatique d'apprentissage, où la motivation joue un rôle important.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Mon premier lien avec le SG est la rencontre avec Julian Alvarez quand il réalisait sa thèse. Aujourd'hui, je codirige la thèse que Claire Pennavaire réalise au sein de l'entreprise QOVEO (Lyon) sur le sujet. À travers ce dernier projet, je m'intéresse à la question de la compatiabilité entre le scénario pédagogique et le gameplay.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Un SG, c'est un environnement informatique pour l'apprentissage humain dans lequel on cherche à introduire un niveau de complexité supplémentaire : le jeu. Ce niveau peut être un véritable scénario de jeu (gameplay) ou une simple interface (fun). Ce second cas ne m'intéresse pas. Le premier cas est particulièrement

interessant car le gameplay est censé favoriser l'engagement de l'apprenant dans un environnement d'apprentissage, les efforts qu'il va fournir et même sa persistance quand les choses sont se compliquer pour lui. Le gameplay serait un véritable moteur pour la motivation. Mais cela implique de réussir non seulement le gameplay (ce qui n'est pas une mince affaire), mais aussi le scénario pédagogique et l'environnement informatique, notamment l'IHM... tout en laissant suffisamment de ressources cognitives à l'apprenant pour qu'il apprenne ! Bref, pour moi, un SG est sans doute une des applications informatiques les plus difficiles à réussir.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

scénario pédagogique
gameplay
IHM
motivation
apprentissage

VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

Je ne connais aucun SG qui réponde à ma vision idéale et sans doute déraisonnable du SG. J'espère me tromper et découvrir bientôt un SG formidable.
<figure><img src="image_284.png" /><figcaption>RENAUD VIDAL
FRANCE
UNIV. AIX-MARSEILLE ET UC BERKELEY</figcaption></figure>

VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Ingénieur recherche au Centre de recherche et d'étude en gestion de l'université d'Aix-Marseille et expert affilié au Center for Catastrophic Risk Management de UC Berkeley.

Recherche dans le domaine de la haute fiabilité des organisations complexes (High Reliability Organizing).

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Concepteur, commanditaire, utilisateur.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Les entraînements et formations avec les outils de type SG permettent d'observer et de travailler finement sur les processus cognitifs de construction du sens (sensemaking), qui sont au cœur des théories de la haute fiabilité des organisations complexes. De plus, l'instrumentation de ces environnement permet d'obtenir des mesure quantitatives de l'intelligence collective déployée par un groupe en formation.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

SG collectifs : outils de mise en situation (bac à sable) dans lequel chaque participant n'a qu'une vision limitée de la réalité proposée (effet de cognition distribuée) et qui réagit aux actions des participants grâce à son ou ses modèles physiques implémentés. Ainsi, les interactions entre participants et entre les participants et le serious game permettent le développement de phénomènes systémiques, reproduisant une caractéristique fondamentale de la complexité du monde.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

bac à sable
cognition distribuée
phénomène systémique
complexité

VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

RescueSim (2011)
Plateforme Feu de Forêt (2007)

<figure><img src="image_285.png" /><figcaption>Plateforme Feu de Forêt</figcaption></figure>
AUTRES

<figure><img src="image_286.png" /><figcaption>RICHARD-EMMANUEL
EASTES</figcaption></figure>

FRANCE

TRACES

VOUS ET VOTRE ASSOCIATION

Président-fondateur de Traces.

Le groupe Traces (Théories et réflexions sur l'apprendre, la communication et l'éducation scientifiques) est un groupe de réflexion et d'action sur la science, sa communication et son rapport à la société. Outre ses publications et activités académiques, il mène des actions de consultance, de formation professionnelle dans ces domaines. Pour ce faire, Traces conjugue les compétences de jeunes professionnels polyvalents (chercheurs, pédagogues, médiateurs, consultants, formateurs, rédacteurs...), pour la plupart associés à d'un laboratoire universitaire et titulaires d'une double formation en sciences expérimentales ou formelles et en sciences humaines et sociales.

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Spécialiste des débats, des jeux de rôle et de l'emploi des variantes de SG nommés « Discussion Games » (jeux de discussion), le groupe Traces est concepteur d'un projet de mise en débat des controverses sociotechniques auprès des salariés d'une industrie chimique. Notre proposition repose sur une solution présentielle et numérique, hybride entre le groupe de travail, l'atelier-débat et le jeu en ligne. Dans ce cadre, nous sommes commanditaire d'un SG et travaillons en collaboration avec une société spécialisée à sa conception.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Afin de toucher l'ensemble du personnel français de l'industrie chimique dans laquelle nous intervenons, nous avons décliné le projet en deux axes complémentaires basés sur les Discussion Games. Le premier consiste en la mise

en place d'ateliers délibératifs en présentiel avec les salariés, desquels ressortent des arguments et du contenu propres à chaque thématique abordée (une douzaine en tout). Ces contenus permettent en retour d'alimenter le SG, lui aussi basé sur le principe des jeux de discussion et permettant aux salariés de s'exprimer librement et anonymement sur les activités de leur entreprise. Le principe ici s'apparente d'ailleurs davantage à un Social Game qu'à un SG.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Nous entendons par SG une application informatique dont l'intention est de combiner à la fois des aspects sérieux tels l'apprentissage, la communication, la sensibilisation, la formation ou encore l'information, avec les aspects ludiques et immersifs du jeu vidéo. Il s'agit donc d'exploiter les mécanismes d'apprentissage utilisés dans les jeux vidéo pour donner l'accès à des connaissances et à une réflexion personnelle.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

* implication/immersion
* formation/information
* apprentissage
* innovant
* communication

VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

* Les Primaires à Gauche (2010)
* Happy Night (2009)
* Clim'City (2008)
* Energuy (2008)

<figure><img src="image_287.png" /><figcaption>Tam Tam (KTM/Traces, 2012)</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_288.png" /><figcaption>YVAN HOCHET</figcaption></figure>

FRANCE
ENSSIB

## VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Ex-enseignant, élève conservateur.

Je suis en formation à l'ENSSIB (Ecole nationale supérieure des Sciences de l'Information et des Bibliothèques: www.enssib.fr/) à Villeurbanne, en 2012-2013. L'Ecole forme les cadres et directeurs des bibliothèques publiques (et a aussi des missions de recherche et de formation continue).

## VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Comme enseignant et futur cadre des Bibliothèques, je suis plutôt « média-teur » de SG : repérer les SG intéressants en fonction du public dont j'ai la charge, les valoriser, assurer une médiation pédagogique pour qu'ils atteignent leur but de formation. À terme, il n'est pas impossible que je sois aussi commande-itaire de SG pour une bibliothèque (il semble manquer aujourd'hui des SG sur l'usage des bibliothèques, sur la recherche d'information par exemple).

## VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Mon lien avec les SG est indirect : je me suis d'abord intéressé à la plus-value que les jeux (au sens large) pouvaient apporter à l'enseignement de l'histoire, de la géographie et de l'éducation civique (objet du Réseau Ludus de l'académie de Caen, co-fondé avec Denis Sestier : http://lewepedagogique.com/reseau-ludus/) dans l'enseignement secondaire. Dans ce cadre assez peu étudié à l'époque, nous avons multiplié les expériences pratiques et tenté de théoriser ce que nous observions (http://histgeo discip.ac-caen.fr/ludus/). Nous avons logiquement détourné des jeux vidéo commerciaux à des fins pédagogiques. Quand le SG s'est imposé, nous avons été intéressés, mais sans nous centrer

sur cette nouveauté et en restant plus des utilisateurs ponctuels dans nos classes.

## VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Une fois la définition commune donnée (le SG comme combinaison du ludique au service d'un message explicite ou d'un apprentissage), il m'est apparu que la pratique nuançait ce cadre de départ : d'une part, parce que des jeux vidéo pouvaient devenir des supports d'apprentissage alors qu'ils n'étaient pas initialement conçus comme tels (nous avons utilisé *SimCity* pour la géographie, *Lords of the Realm II* pour le Moyen Âge entre autres), et d'autre part, parce que des SG utilisés spontanément par des élèves manquaient leur but (informer ou former) s'ils n'étaient pas insérés dans une démarche pédagogique. Bref, sans médiation, ces jeux sont beaucoup plus « games » que « serious » (en tout cas, ils sont perçus ainsi par des élèves). Pour résumer : le SG se définit beaucoup plus par son usage que par sa nature.

## LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

* jeu
* plaisir
* apprentissage
* rétroaction
* simulation

## VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

* SimCity (1989)
* Voyage au Bout du Charbon (2008)
* Éco-Reporter à Andromède (2010)
* À l'Assaut (2004)

<figure><img src="image_289.png" /><figcaption>À l'Assaut</figcaption></figure>
AUTRES

<figure><img src="image_290.png" /><figcaption>Voyage au Bout du Charbon</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_291.png" /><figcaption>Éco-Reporter à
Andromède</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_292.png" /><figcaption>MICHEL
LAVACRY
FRANCE
CERIMES</figcaption></figure>

## VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Le blog Jeux-Sérieux (http://www.jeux-serieux.fr/) est édité par le CERIMES (Centre de ressources et d'information sur les multimédias pour l'enseignement supérieur - http://www.cerimes.fr/). Il a pour objectif de repérer les jeux sérieux susceptibles d'intéresser le secteur de l'enseignement supérieur et d'informer sur l'activité du secteur (manifestations, comptes rendus, revues du web...).

## VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Activité ludique destinée à combiner le divertissement à la pédagogie dans une discipline ou d'un domaine donné. De ce fait, sont exclus de cette sphère les jeux ayant pour seul objectif le divertissement, qui ne sont pas traités dans le blog.

## VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

SimAgri (2008)
Ma Cyber AUto-Entreprise (2012)
Suez Ambassador (2011)

<figure><img src="image_293.png" /><figcaption>SimAgri</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_294.png" /><figcaption>MARC
LAVIGNE
FRANCE
GAME IN</figcaption></figure>

VOUS ET VOTRE ASSOCIATION

Délégué général de Game IN.

Game IN est l'association euro-régionale qui regroupe les acteurs du jeu vidéo en Nord-Pas-de-Calais et Wallonie, soit 32 membres au début de l'année 2012. Elle vise à mettre en place les conditions favorables au développement de la filière du jeu vidéo, dont le SG.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

À partir de 2007, j'ai travaillé à la mise en place de la politique régionale de soutien, en Nord-Pas-de-Calais, au développement économique de ce secteur émergent, au sein de la CCI de Valenciennes, et pour le compte du Pôle images régional, sous la direction de Jean Menu. À ce titre, j'ai accompagné les studios de jeux vidéo, producteurs de SG, mais aussi sensibilisé les secteurs potentiellement utilisateurs de ce nouvel outil : santé, industries du commerce, etc. J'étais chargé entre autres d'instruire les dossiers de demande d'aide à l'Appel à projets serious game fraîchement créé en 2009, ainsi qu'à l'Appel à projets NKM.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

La richesse et l'originalité des SG reposent sur la capacité à exploiter les mécaniques du jeu vidéo pour traiter d'enjeux dits sérieux, pour former, communiquer, sensibiliser, éduquer... Exploitant des interfaces homme-machine, suscitant de nouveaux usages, ces applications numériques nécessitent l'intervention de nombreux domaines d'expertises spécifiques aux quels elles doivent se coupler : Il s'agit avant tout de jeux vidéo, mais pas seulement de jeux vidéo.

Leur avenir semble prospère, sans frontière prédéfinie, car les SG sont sujets à un développement centripète et centrifuge. De le même manière que le jeu, leur champ d'application est sans cesse plus large, et ils se diffusent dans des domaines d'activité toujours plus nombreux, pouvant être intégrés et couplés à d'autres outils. Parallèlement, la nature même de ces mécaniques de jeu et de ces outils est d'être innovant, absorbant, en se nourrissant de technologies, d'usages, de créativité, qui dépassent l'univers du jeu vidéo ou proviennent de secteurs connexes.

Il est raisonnable de penser que bientôt les SG seront partout, et que nous ne les appellerons probablement plus très longtemps des « Serious Games ».

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

fun
gameplay
immersion
interactivité
expertise

VOS SG PRÉFÉRÉS

Ludomédic (2011)
Le Village aux Oiseaux (2010)
Images 2.0 (2011)

<figure><img src="image_295.png" /><figcaption>Le Village aux Oiseaux</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_296.png" /><figcaption>GARETH
MILLS
ROYAUME-UNI
FUTURELAB</figcaption></figure>

## YOUR POSITION AND COMPANY

Director at Futurelab.

Futurelab aims to inspire, challenge and engage all young people in rich and rewarding learning experiences that will equip them with the essential skills and attitudes for life, learning and work in the 21st century.

We do this by making the most of new approaches to learning and through the innovative use of technology. Our research is often rooted in practical pilot projects with schools and include the exploration of technologies including social networking, mobile technologies, gaming and digital literacy.

We take evidence of what works and turn it into practical tools and services to help teachers, schools and policy makers provide the best possible learning for young people.

We have an archive of research projects and a number of software prototypes and solutions available to educations, such as *Explorattree*.

## YOUR LINK WITH SG

I am an expert in the design of learning and curriculum development working with Governments, agencies and schools. I work alongside the Futurelab research team to promote the effective use of technology in education settings. SGs are one of many technological themes explored by Futurelab.

At Futurelab we are also very interested in new pedagogic approaches and the design of learning spaces.

Our learning with games projects suggests that the successful use of gaming in schools is as much an issue of pedagogy as game design. "Using games in a meaningful way within lessons depended far more on the effective use

of existing teaching skills than it did on the development of any new, game-related skills."

## YOUR DEFINITION OF SG

At Futurelab we take a broad view of the use of gaming in schools. Our review of research around gaming environments for education includes off-the-shelf games, SGs, virtual worlds and simulations.

There are many definitions and ways of classifying educational games, SGs and their relationship to virtual worlds and simulations. Some researchers see them as a continuum while others see them all as different categories of the same thing.

SGs are the accepted term for games with an educational intent. They need to be engaging, although not necessarily fun, while the learning can be implicit or explicit. There is no uniform pedagogy within serious or educational games; earlier games tended to be based on a behaviourist model. Later games try to incorporate experiential, situated and socio-cultural pedagogical models.

Games are used widely outside of formal education systems, for example by the military and within the health and commerce sectors. Their use within schools is less common but developing. Our work has captured their current use and how teachers could be supported to use them appropriately.

## SG IN A FEW KEYWORDS

* immersive
* challenging
* problem solving
* regular feedback
* designed for success

## YOUR FAVORITE SGs

I will not offer a list of specific games but the types of games that have good educational potential.

-Modelling games and exploring variables (Roller Coaster Tycoon or SimCity) >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
AUTRES

<figure><img src="image_297.png" /><figcaption>MICHEL
ROCHET</figcaption></figure>

FRANCE
SIMULRISK

VOUS ET VOTRE ENTREPRISE

Vice-président de Simulrisk.

Organisme de formation continue, qui s'adresse exclusivement aux cadres et dirigeants, avec une forte orientation sur la formation scientifique et le monde des ingénieurs et de la R&D.

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Nous sommes commanditaires et utilisateurs de SG dans le cadre d'un processus pédagogique plus global.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Nous sommes vigilants sur tous les outils et méthodes qui sont susceptibles d'apporter un progrès significatif en matière pédagogique ou dans la diffusion de cette pédagogie. Nous avons beaucoup travaillé sur l'é-learning (en tant qu'usager ou prescripteur), sur les méthodes collaboratives à distance, sur l'usage des jeux de rôle et mises en situation. Notre expérience de plus de 15 ans (et pour les dirigeants du Collège, de plus de 30 ans en matière de NTIC) nous a conduits à beaucoup de prudence et de pragmatisme par rapport à ces innovations. Mais les SG malgré tous leurs défauts de jeunesse nous semblent un domaine incontournable. Nous savons que nous aurons à les intégrer dans nos offres et dans nos ingénieries pédagogiques.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

jeu
simulation
intelligence apportée
intégration de l'utilisateur

-Problem solving and strategy games
(Knights of Honour)

-Games that allow control and programming (Lego Mindstorms)

-Games that can stimulate creativity activity away from the game - such as creative writing (Myst)

-Games where children are the authors - see scratch or create a scape.

Issue to consider for parents and teachers:

-Age appropriateness

-The depiction of violence in some games

-Representation of women in some games

-Managing gaming time with other life skills, such as social skills, practical hands-on learning and exercise.

<figure><img src="image_298.png" /><figcaption>Lego Mindstorms (2006)</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_299.png" /><figcaption>Myst (1993)</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_300.png" /><figcaption>PRIDI
SIREGAR
FRANCE
EMCO3</figcaption></figure>

VOUS ET VOTRE ENTREPRISE

Directeur d'EMCO3.

EMCO3 est une jeune société (SAS) basée à Clermont-Ferrand depuis juin 2010. Elle est constituée de 15 collaborateurs. Notre cœur de métier se situe à la convergence des technologies de l'information et de communication (TIC), de l'intelligence artificielle (IA) et de la modélisation multi-échelles des systèmes complexes (en particulier le vivant). Les marchés principaux visés sont ceux de la formation (initiale et continue) basée sur les SG et ceux pouvant bénéficier de la modélisation in silico de systèmes complexes (par exemple l'industrie pharmaceutique).

VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Nous sommes à la fois concepteur et développeur de SG grâce, notamment, à notre compétence multidisciplinaire.

VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Nous avons une longue expérience dans le domaine de la recherche scientifique et médicale (partie « métier ») ainsi qu'en intelligence artificielle. Certains d'entre nous ont été enseignants-chercheurs avant de rejoindre le privé. Outre les domaines scientifiques eux-mêmes, la pédagogie et la formation sont donc une passion que nous voulons exprimer et transférer dans le cadre des SG. Nous sommes convaincus qu'ils contribueront d'une manière significative au développement de nouvelles approches pédagogiques.

VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Un SG est tout d'abord un produit, généralement un logiciel, qui dénote à la fois une notion sérieuse et une notion de jeu. La partie « sérieuse »

peut recouvrir différents objectifs : former, informer, convaincre (ex : Advergames). Le volet « jeu » donne une dimension ludique au produit. D'une façon générale, les SG encouragent une participation active du joueur à travers une mise en situation, des objectifs à atteindre et des décisions/actions qu'il devra prendre/effectuer au cours du jeu. Historiquement, les SG se sont inspirés des techniques de jeux vidéo (scénarisation, game design, interactivité,...) mais ils s'en démarquent nettement car il reste un élément clé spécifique aux SG : le contenu (information/message ou connaissance métier). Ainsi, les questions techniques doivent s'articuler à tout instant autour de ce contenu et de la manière dont il peut être acquis par le joueur. Il est donc nécessaire de faire intervenir des spécialistes « métier », mais aussi des experts en psychologie cognitive et en ergonomie.

LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

- formation
- jeu
- interactivité
- mise en situation
- scènes dynamiques

VOS SG

Nous avons réalisé un SG dédié à l'apprentissage du raisonnement clinique dans le cadre du diagnostic des œdèmes. Bien qu'il ne s'agisse que d'un seul produit, nous avons développé en amont et en parallèle une plateforme technologique dédiée à la formation médicale en général, à l'apprentissage par problème et à l'apprentissage du raisonnement clinique en particulier. Cette plateforme incorpore un générateur d'organes et de tissus virtuels multi-échelles, capable de créer des objets graphiques 3D, des scènes dynamiques et des simulateurs. Ces derniers figurent parmi les éléments clés nécessaires à tout SG dédié à la médecine et à la biologie. Enfin, des modules IA ont été réalisés pour piloter le moteur de jeu dans des circonstances diverses.
<figure><img src="image_301.png" /><figcaption>LUC SOLER</figcaption></figure>

FRANCE
IRCAD

## VOUS ET VOTRE INSTITUTION

Directeur des recherches en chirurgie assistée par ordinateur au sein de l'Institut de Recherche contre les Cancers de l'appareil digestif (IRCAD), Professeur associé à l'équipe de Chirurgie digestive et endocrine du Prof. Jacques Marescaux au sein des hôpitaux universitaires de Strasbourg.

## VOTRE APPROCHE DU SG

Concepteur, développeur et utilisateur de logiciels éducatifs et de simulateurs chirurgicaux dédiés à la formation des chirurgiens, l'IRCAD peut parfois aussi être commanditaire de simulateurs pédagogiques.

## VOTRE LIEN AVEC LE SG

Le SG n'est apparu que très récemment comme un outil potentiellement intéressant pour la formation des chirurgiens, suite à une étude des bénéfices et limites de l'utilisation des simulateurs chirurgicaux dans la formation. Cette étude a en effet mis en évidence le besoin d'un parcours pédagogique et d'un système automatique d'évaluation associés à l'utilisation d'un simulateur pour en tirer le plus grand bénéfice. Ce parcours pédagogique intégré où il n'est possible de passer à la prochaine étape que lorsque l'évaluation est suffisante, transforme alors le simulateur de type « vol libre » en un véritable SG.

## VOTRE DÉFINITION DU SG

Un SG est un logiciel éducatif visant à délivrer un message pédagogique ou commercial par le biais d'un environnement de type jeu vidéo autrement appelé « gameplay ». Il est généralement fondé sur un logiciel exploitant la réalité virtuelle, c'est-à-

dire une représentation numérique du monde réel, mais ce n'est pas obligatoire. Le mode le plus avancé de cette représentation numérique est la simulation virtuelle. Un SG repose également sur un parcours pédagogique défini, imposant des étapes successives dans l'avancée du jeu. Enfin, le SG intègre nécessairement une évaluation permettant à l'apprenant de savoir s'il s'est trompé ou non. Plus encore, il permet un classement, typique du jeu vidéo et participant de façon significative à son attrait.

## LE SG EN QUELQUES MOTS CLÉS

* jeu
* éducation
* règle
* pédagogie
* évaluation

<figure><img src="image_302.png" /><figcaption>Bloc Opératoire (2010)</figcaption></figure>
AUTRES

<figure><img src="image_303.png" /><figcaption>MARTIJN
VAN GOGH
PAYS-BAS
SYNTENS</figcaption></figure>

## YOUR POSITION AND COMPANY

Innovation consultant at Syntens, innovation network for entrepreneurs.

Syntens Innovation Centre contributes to the growth of the Dutch economy by stimulating innovation in SME's. Syntens raises awareness amongst SME's of their options to innovate en assists them to take concrete steps that lead to tangible results. The large, personal network of Syntens, embracing technology providers, entrepreneurs and branch and trade organisations extends across the most important sectors of the Dutch economy and is regionally accessible. By creating new links within this network, innovations are created that result in new business. Thus, Syntens Innovation Centre indirectly contributes to the generation of an estimated annual extra turnover in the Dutch economy.

## YOUR APPROACH OF SG

I would consider myself as the linking pin between the 'serious games world' and the other sectors which can benefit from serious games, f.e. the health-sector, the public sector, etc.

## YOUR LINK WITH SG

I introduce and guide companies from other sectors like health, to the game sector. Because Syntens as a company is free to use for entrepreneurs, our help is totally independent. We don't have a commercial objective. My job is to help entrepreneurs make a good decision a/ whether or not a SG would be a good solution an b/ how to make it a successful project and come into contact with relevant game developers. A second thing we do as Syntens is to try to stimulate research to develope in the field of SGs.

## YOUR DEFINITION OF SG

A game that is fun to play, but has also a more serious function outside the play itself.

## SG IN A FEW KEYWORDS

* fun
* applied
* playful
* serious
* purpose

## YOUR FAVORITE SGs

Air Medic Sky One

<figure><img src="image_304.png" /><figcaption>Air Medic Sky One (2011)</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_305.png" /></figure>
SERIOUS GAMES
AN INTRODUCTION

Julian Alvarez & Damien Djaouti

Foreword: Olivier Rampnoux

Translation:

Chapter I: Philippe Fauquet

Chapter II: Claudia Ratti

Chapter III was first published by Damien Djaouti, Julian Alvarez,

Jean-Pierre Jessel & Olivier Rampnoux,

under the title "Origins of Serious Games",

in the volume *Serious Games and Edutainment Applications*, Minhua Ma,

Andreas Oikonomou & Lakhmi Jain (eds.), Springer, 2011, p. 25-43,

<http://www.springer.com/computer/book/978-1-4471-2160-2>
FOREWORD

The status of video games is evolving within society. The video game practices of children and young people, and more and more, that of adults or seniors can be a cause for concern for us all, as parents, educators, professionals, or researchers. Many books written by specialists (doctors, psychologists, teachers, journalists) call for caution in using video games. However, these same games have the capacity to fascinate us and have become part of our cultural universe.<fnref n="1" /> Books are made into video games, video games become movies, stories migrate from one universe to another to the point of being completely entangled – it is a true multimedia environment. This convergence of content, and the versatility of screens and technology all support the process.

The French government has supported the establishment of competitive clusters focused on video games, local governments seeing this industry as a means of restructuring and developing their economic base. As such, video games are much more than technical objects; they permeate our society and both their conception and use must be examined as drivers of behavioral changes. This inquiry should extend from the creation process to gaming situations, requiring a variety of disciplinary approaches: from engineering science to sociology, from public policy analysis to aesthetics.

<footnote n="1">1. See *Médiamorphoses* no 22, February 2008.</footnote>
This book helps us in understanding the current issues that surround video games, viewed through the prism of Serious Games, video games "with serious intent", recognized as one of the key elements of this new digital culture. It has no intention of building a new video game theory, or defining the process of creating a Serious Game. It simply offers to help us decode the fervor that currently exists around Serious Games. In recent months, Serious Games have been the subject of much attention from political and economic parties, as demonstrated by the following initiatives:

- Creation or reorientation of competitive clusters to focus on Serious Games

- Emergence of initiatives promoted by local authorities to discuss Serious Games

- Call for projects under the French Government's Stimulus Plan with financial aid totaling 20 million euros

- Organization of design contests by large industrial groups

- Organization of events and trade shows dedicated to Serious Games

- Development of websites dedicated to Serious Games and emergence of lengthy explanations of the object in collaborative encyclopedias

- Publication of numerous books in English

- Organization of scientific conferences

The results of their experiences as players, their professional activities and countless interviews, *Serious Game: an Introduction*, put forward by Julian Alvarez and Damien Djaouti, is a documented step in understanding these new applications. Five years of interviews at their disposal and with a critical look at fifteen years of experience gained in the field with companies and partners such as the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), the Toulouse District School Board, the French Civil Aviation University, Orange Labs, Dupuis publishers, Bayard & Milan publishers, Publicis Group advertising and communications company, TF1 television network, the Cité de l'Espace theme park, give this book the objectivity needed to understand the
many different ways in which Serious Games are used. Whether one is a player, a learner, decision maker or game developer, the diversity of viewpoints and testimonials presented and the multitude of Serious Games discussed allow each person to form an initial opinion on these video games with serious intentions.

Moreover, this intention – or rather these intentions – political, economic, educational – are too “serious” to not subject them to analysis. The point is not to praise Serious Games or to view the introduction of a playful dimension in education or communication as automatic progress. We will keep in mind that this is an innovation that opens up new perspectives. Serious Games aim to offer new ways of transmitting knowledge and know-how.

Of course, this book offers us a chance to provide an introduction, and calls for expansions of the subject matter at a level to match the current effervescence of productions and studies.

Olivier Rampnoux
# INTRODUCTION

In the early 1980's, video games underwent their first economic boom and generated almost twice the earnings of the American film industry. Despite periodic crises, the video game market continues to grow globally. Thus, from 2003 to 2012 the video game industry has grown from revenue of $18 billion<fnref n="1" /> to $69 billion<fnref n="2" />. In May 2008 there were an estimated 281 million game consoles in existence worldwide and there are currently somewhere between 600 million and 1 billion potential players around the globe according to IDATE<fnref n="3" />.

Now we find ourselves at the beginning of the 21st century and it's difficult to consider video games as a mere fad, as some companies predicted at the onset of the 1980's. Today's under-30 generation<fnref n="4" /> was born with video games. Their consumption of gaming objects is as natural to them as watching television or listening to the radio was to previous generations. Yet, this practice is not confined to young people. People in their thirties and forties cultivate the nostalgia of video games through “retro gaming”, returning to the games of the 80's and 90's. Older generations engage in virtual card games, such as *FreeCell*, and the like. Grandparents see video games as a way to create

<footnote n="1">1. Alvarez & Michaud, *Serious Games: Advergaming, Edugaming, Training...*, IDATE, 2008, <http://ja.games.free.fr/ludoscience/PDF/EtudeIDATE08_VF.pdf>.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. IDEF Cannes 2011, <http://bit.ly/jiKoXv>.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. *Ibid*.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Sometimes refered to as "Generation Y", grouping together persons born between the late 1970's and the mid 1990's.</footnote>
ties with their grandchildren. Video games can even be found
in certain retirement homes -the Nintendo Wii coming to mind
- to stimulate the memory and motor skills of retirees<fnref n="1" />. Gaming
objects are multigenerational and have become part of our
culture as is apparent by the many household objects: clothes<fnref n="2" />,
jewelry<fnref n="3" />, furniture<fnref n="4" />, etc. which make reference to *Pac Man, Mario
Bros, Space Invaders*, etc.

It is within this context that Serious Games arrive, with the
first significant game being *America's Army*, released in 2002⁵.
This type of computer application is based on video games, both
technically and culturally, but attempts to distance itself from the
field of pure entertainment. Serious Games or "games with a utili-
tarian purpose" have as their main objective to teach, inform,
train, and allow one to experiment, all while playing.

To date, Serious Games have been applied in many sectors,
including health, defense, education, politics, training, and
ecology, and the list is continually expanding. Serious Games
therefore group together a wide variety of different markets.
Since 2007, a range of between 1.5 and over 10 billion dollars<fnref n="6" /> is
regularly cited. This discrepancy can be explained by the variety
of definitions and approaches currently presented by the diffe-
rent parties associated with this emerging industry. This uncer-
tainty is also fuelled by the fact that Serious Games mark a major
transitional phase in the video game industry. The industry now
addresses itself more clearly to all generations, improves itself
and matures. This leads to new developmental prospects in the
B2B and B2C<fnref n="7" /> sectors for all parties concerned. These prospects
were promoted in May 2009 by Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet,
French Secretary of State for Forward Planning and Development

<footnote n="1">1. Alvarez & Michaud, *Serious Games...*, op. cit.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. http://blog.schtunks.info/post/2009/10/11/Une-cravate-Space-Invaders</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. http://www.tribords.com/?bagues-pac-man</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. http://leblogecolovie.free.fr/?p=206</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5. http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-05-19-serious-games_x.htm</footnote>

<footnote n="6">6. Alvarez & Michaud, *Serious Games...*, op. cit.</footnote>

<footnote n="7">7. Acronyms designating trade between two businesses (*Business 2 Business*) and trade between a business and private individuals (*Business 2 Customer*).</footnote>
of the Digital Economy, who launched the first call for Serious Game projects<fnref n="1" /> in France.

We open this introduction to Serious Games with a discussion on definition, classification and the variety of approaches. Then we discuss the primary market sectors that currently use this gaming object. Lastly, we give voice to the various parties involved in this field (industry, consultants, designers, teachers, researchers). This provides the reader with other viewpoints, as a complement and counterpoint to the choices and analyses expressed by the authors in previous chapters.

<footnote n="1">1. http://www.lexpress.fr/actualite/high-tech/le-coup-de-pouce-de-nkm-aux-serious-games_786966.html</footnote>
# CHAPTER I
## DEFINITIONS AND CONCEPTS

This chapter proposes a definition of “Serious Games” and an approach dedicated to classify its various occurrences.

### 1. INTRODUCTION

Serious Game application fields are related nowadays to many sectors such as health, defense, education, policy, training and ecology, and keep on expanding. Serious Game therefore addresses a set of markets. This positioning is thus accompanied of a very rich typology to refer to the object: Educational Games, Simulation, Alternative Purpose Games, Edutainment, Digital Game-Based Learning, Immersive Learning Simulations, Social Impact Games, Persuasive Games, Games for Good, Synthetic Learning Environments, Games with an Agenda... This census reflects the numerous actors with an interest in the Serious Game and the diversity of their approaches.

Despite this diversity of names, several contemporary definitions of Serious Game are proposed. The more general seems to be that the game designers Sande Chen & David Michael: “games whose first purpose was not mere entertainment.” At the same time, Professor Michael Zyda, currently Director of the USC GamePipe Los Angeles laboratory, proposed a more specific definition: “A mental contest, played with a computer in accordance with specific rules, that uses entertainment to further government or corporate training, education, health, public policy, and strategic communication objectives.”
In these definitions, we find a common base with the vision of the Serious Game put forward by Benjamin Sawyer: "[...] developers, researchers and industrial people, who are looking at ways to use video games and video games technologies outside entertainment." As a consultant, Sawyer is one of the important figures of this sector in the United States. He notably founded in 2002 The Serious Game Initiative, an independent institution to develop Serious Game and its industry. However, some actors do not proceed as well. For example, in the sector of vocational training, some are based on role games or board games rather than video games. Kevin Corti perfectly illustrated through a very critical article that calls for the expansion of the usual definitions of Serious Game. He also recalled that some of the actors, sometimes quoted to illustrate the Serious Game, do not recognize it in this term, and prefer other names such as Game-Based Learning and Simulation. This claim refers us to the "Serious Game" of Clark Abt's book published in 1970. In his writings, this researcher sees the games support allowing to enrich the school curriculum by reducing the border between "school learning" and "informal learning". He supports his thesis by many practical examples of teaching by the game for topics ranging from physics to human sciences, through the policy. Although that inspired by the first computer simulations, Abt offers at the time a definition of the term "Serious Game" which is not restricted to the only video game (computer game). In the 1970s, a "Serious Game" could be a computer game, a game, a role-playing game or even a game of outdoor.

Today, this link with computer support appears to be a constant in the Serious Game industry. Nevertheless, professionals do not unite around a same definition of the object.

## 2. A PROPOSAL FOR A DEFINITION

Aware that there are a multitude of different approaches to the Serious Game, we know that to register in one of them implies limits. However, to move forward in our words, we must position us. Thus, in this chapter, we choose to relate us to the definition of the Serious Game, developed during our previous work:
"Computer application, for which the original intention is to combine with consistency, both serious (Serious) aspects such as non-exhaustive and non-exclusive, teaching, learning, communication, or the information, with playful springs from the video game (Game)." Such an association, which operates by implementing an utility script, which, in computer terms is to implement a package (sound and graphics), a history and the same rules, is therefore intended to depart from the simple entertainment.

This definition can be summarized by implementing the following relationship:

$$ \text{Serious Game} = \text{Utilitarian function(s)} + \text{Video Game} $$

## 3. DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SERIOUS GAME AND VIDEO GAME: NOTION OF SERIOUS GAMING

Nothing prevents to play a video game originally dedicated to the only entertainment in adopting a posture of "serious". Many examples can be identified in the education sector as we are including Gee (2003) or Schaffer (2006). In France, the Pedagame collective performs field experiments on the use of video games from entertainment to educational purposes. For example, the set of karaoke Singstar PS3 (2008) is used as support of course to work the pronunciation of the English to college students. In another register, the "question-answer" game Buzz! Quiz TV (2008) was hijacked by teachers of history and geography to

<figure><img src="image_306.png" /><figcaption>Buzz! Quiz TV</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_307.png" /><figcaption>Lords of the Realm II</figcaption></figure>
current discussed concepts. They rely, to do this, on the possi-
bility of create custom questions proposed by this title. Ludus
network brings together teachers using the set (video or not) for
educational purposes, highlights also the use of *SimCity* (1989)
*Lords of the Realm II* (1996) for the history and geography.

Nevertheless, a fundamental difference persists between this
type of approach and the Serious Game as defined above. If the
result appears similar (a game used for serious purposes), only the
Serious Game was explicitly designed for this use. This approach
is thus distinguished from the idea to take a commercial video
game to assign it a new function posteriori. This argument is
logically put forward by the Serious game industry to enhance
their expertise. This tends to exclude the approaches of diversion
from the Serious games field. If this issue remains controversial,
an interesting concept was suggested by Henry Jenkins through
the term "Serious Gaming". Thus, in considering the difference
in design between the titles "diverted" and the other process, we
propose to reserve the term "Serious Game" for games that have
explicitly intended for purposes other than simple entertainment
by their designer. "Diversion Video Game" approaches, which
allow a game to serve serious purposes not anticipated by their
designer, are included in the term "Serious Gaming". This term
includes then any use of a game for purposes other than simple
entertainment, whatever is the original intention of its designer.

<figure><img src="image_308.png" /></figure>
## 4. CLASSIFY SERIOUS GAMES

Facing the very rich typology of Serious Games identified: News Games, Advergames, Military Games, Exergames, Edugames, Datagames, etc..., it seems relevant to clarify this aspect, by putting in place a classificatory system. In our work, we have retained the three following criteria:

* **G: Gameplay**, based on the gameplay of the "Serious Game". This test provides information on the playful dimension by providing information on the type of playful structure used.

* **P: Purpose**, based on the purpose of the "Serious Game". This test provides information on the functions beyond the "simple entertainment" desired by the designer.

* **S: Scope**, based on the areas of applications covered by the "Serious Game". This test informs on the type of public market (market, age...) that the designer seeks to achieve.

These three criteria form the "G/P/S model". This is a guide that allows to classify the "Serious Games" at the time by their playful dimension (Gameplay), and their serious dimension (Purpose & Scope). It is implemented effectively on the website:

http://serious gameclassification.com

### 4.1 GAMEPLAY CRITERION

Introduced by Caillois in 1958, and then updated by Frasca in 2003, the concept of "paidia" and "ludus" refers to two distinct playful forms. Their difference is on the construction of the playful structure. For example, *SimCity* (1989) appears to take the "paidia", because it proposes no objectives explicit to allow the player to "win". According to the definitions proposed by Salen & Zimmerman, *SimCity* is indeed a game devoid of "quantifiable outcome", a final State terminating part while offering an assessment of the performance of the player. This means that *SimCity* is a video toy.

Conversely, a "ludus" game like *Pac Man* (1980) defines explicit goals (eat all the dots while avoiding the ghosts) that are used to assess the performance of the player, a positive return (points score gain) or negative (loss of a life). We have, in this case, to a video game.
To illustrate, by analogy, the difference between “video toy” and “video game”, take a doll *Barbie* (Ruth Handler, 1959) and the *Monopoly* game (Charles Darrow, 1935). The *Barbie* doll is a toy because no record is provided in the box to tell us what rules to follow and how to win. It’s here to play, therefore, paidia. A video toy offers a similar approach. In the case of the *Monopoly*, there are rules to follow to win. This is underlying objective: destroy all of his opponents. It is here ludus. This is exactly what underlies a video game.

Note that the difference between “paidia” and “ludus” is equiva-
lent to that found between “play” and “game” in the English
language. The “play” is close to the idea of fun (Barbie) then that
the “game” behind the notion of rules of game (Monopoly).

Based on this principle, we refer to "Serious Play", serious
games are based on a structure "paidia" (video toy) and "Serious
Game" those that are based on a structure "ludus" (video game).

4.2 PURPOSE CRITERION

The assessment of the objectives that a designer wants to aim
through the realization of a "Serious Game" is far from simple.
Usually, different designations such as Advergames, Edugames,
Exergames, Datagames, News Games, Edumarket Games, Health
Games, Military Games, etc. are used to distinguish the "service
categories" of the Serious Game. In our opinion, the use of these
categories is not necessarily more relevant because the criteria

<figure><img src="image_309.png" /><figcaption>Pac Man</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_310.png" /><figcaption>SimCity</figcaption></figure>
are devoid of formal criteria. We have therefore tried to establish
a more synthetic list of categories.

Among the categories generally used to describe the purpose of
a Serious Game, we find “Edugames” (and its equivalents “Games
for Education” and “Learning Games”) or “Advergames” (and its
equivalent “Advert Games”). In a simple manner, a “Edugame”
allows an educational message. An “Advergaming” to promote
a product or service, that can be interpreted as a deliberately
positive message about transmission of said product or service.
Somehow, although their intention is different (commercial or
educational), these two categories of Serious Games appear to
have the purpose of a “message”. A similar observation can be
conducted on other usual categories: the “Newsgames” broad-
cast an informative message, the “Political Games” a political
message, etc....

In the end, the different categories of “purpose” generally used
are apparently used to differentiate the nature of the message
broadcast by the “Serious Games”. By classifying messages by
their nature, then we identify them as follows:

- The **informative** message, to broadcast a neutral point of view.

- The **educational** message, to transmit knowledge or education.

- The **persuasive** message, to influence.

- The **subjective** message, to broadcast an opinion.

However, all Serious games do not have the purpose of a
message. Indeed, we have games belonging to the categories
“Training and Simulation Games” or “Games for Health” aimed
another purpose: provide training.

For example, *Pulse!!* is used to train emergency physicians to
handle crisis situations, while *MoSBE* allows to prepare soldiers
for military operations. The concept of training here results in
the development of physical or cognitive skills on the practice of
the game.

A third and less common purpose seems also interesting to
identify to classify the “Serious Games” to us: games designed
to facilitate the exchange of data. In this registry, we have for
example *Google Image Labeler* (2007). This Serious Game was
developed by Google in order to improve the relevance of its image search engine. Each played match is thus a means to enrich its database, collect statistical data to refine the links between certain images and lists of words associated with... This type of application, called "Datagame", is still relatively little widespread to this day.

In summary, we therefore propose to classify the purposes according to three main categories:

**- Broadcasting a message:** the Serious Game is designed to deliver one or more messages. They can be of four different natures: educational (ex: Edugames), informative (ex: Newsgames), persuasive (ex: Advergames) and subjective (ex: Activist Games, Art Games). A same game can combine several types of message.

**- Providing training:** the Serious Game is designed to improve cognitive or physical Player capabilities (ex: Exergames)

**- Promoting the sharing of data:** the Serious Game intends to facilitate the exchange of data (ex: Datagames) between players, or the Publisher of the game and players.

## 4.3 SCOPE CRITERION

This criterion offers two levels of information.

First of all, information on the application domain within the Serious Game. This list of areas of application must regularly be updated to reflect the emergence of new sectors. It has, today, the following areas: State & Government, Military, Health, Education,

<figure><img src="image_311.png" /><figcaption>Google Image Labeler</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_312.png" /><figcaption>Foldit</figcaption></figure>
business, Religion, Art & Culture, Ecology, Politics, Humanitarian & charitable, Media, Advertising, Scientific Research.

Other information concerning the target audience which is transcribed by age as well as by type: Public, Professionals, Students. For example, for the field of Health, practitioners will be considered as "Professionals", medical students as "Students", and patients as "General Public". This information can, of course, be more detailed as required, for example in seeking to identify the age, sex, nationality, etc. of the target public.

## Gameplay

◯ Game-based (ludus)

◯ Play-based (paidia)

## Purpose

☐ Message broadcasting

☐ Educative

☐ Informative

☐ Persuasive

☐ Subjective

☐ Training

☐ Mental

☐ Physical

☐ Data exchange

## Scope

### Market

☐ State & Government

☐ Military

☐ Healthcare

☐ Education

☐ Corporate

☐ Religious

☐ Culture & Arts

☐ Ecology

☐ Politics

☐ Humanitarian

☐ Advertising

☐ Scientific Research

☐ Entertainment

### Public

☐ General Public

☐ Professionals

☐ Students

# 5. SYNTHESIS

## 5.1 DEFINITIONS

This chapter has led us to define the 3 following concepts:

- **A Serious Game** is characterized by two main points:

1. It combines video game and one or several utility functions: broadcasting a message, providing training, facilitating the exchange of data.

2. It targets a market other than the only entertainment: defense, training, education, health, commerce, communication...
- **A Serious Play** is part of an approach similar to the Serious Game but relies on the video toy instead of the video game: it thus does suggest explicit playful objectives to do in order to «win» or «lose».

- The **Serious Gaming** is characterized by two main points:

(1) The action "to associate", without computer programming, and posterior with a videogame objective one or several utility functions: broadcasting a message, providing training, facilitating the exchange of data.

(2) This action is then within a context of use which departs from the only entertainment: defense, training, education, health, commerce, communication...

## 5.2 CLASSIFICATION

To understand the diversity of the Serious Game, it is important to classify both by its playful dimension and its utility dimension. For this, we propose a classification system called the "G/P/S":

- **G**, as "Gameplay", determines if the Serious Game is based on a video Game or a video Toy. A Video Game sets rules that evaluate the performance of the player unlike Toy that fits more in the idea of a sandpit where is fun and where the notion of «win» does not exist. In the case of a «Toy» type, we speak of «Serious Play» instead of «Serious Game».

- **P**, as "Purpose", put in place the main function of the Serious Game. This test indicates if Serious Game is used to broadcast a message, provide training, collect data, or more of these functions at a time.

- **S**, as "Scope", identifies the Serious Game markets. Thus such applications may apply to defense, education, health...

These three combined criteria allow to reflect the "Playful" dimension (Gameplay) and the "Serious" dimension (Purpose + Scope) by the designer of a "Serious Game". However, players can use a video game in a way that has not necessarily provided by its designer. It is then "hijacking a use", which allows for example to use for Serious purposes a game basically designed for the entertainment. These two approaches, original design and use hijacking, constitute the whole of the «Serious Gaming».
CHAPTER II
SECTORS OF APPLICATION

We have just outlined the key concepts of Serious Games. Now we will illustrate our ideas by reviewing the different market segments that make use of this gaming object. This inquiry allows us to discover the characteristics of each area of application.

1. DEFENSE

1.1 AMERICA'S ARMY

July 4th, 2002, Independence Day in the United States, marks the release of *America's Army* (U.S. Army, 2002). At first glance, this looks like a classic first-person shooter game. Only available on-line, each game places two groups of soldiers against each other, each with a specific mission (rescue a hostage, kill the enemy ...). It fits into the "tactical shooter" genre of video games. This means that in addition to firing and moving about, a relative "realism" mitigates the pace of the action: the weapons have a certain recoil, shooting while running decreases the precision of your aim, and two or three bullets are enough to kill an opponent. Technologically on the cutting edge and updated on a regular basis, *America's Army* rivals the largest commercial productions of the gaming industry designated by the "AAA" label. And yet, it is distributed free of charge.

Why use this method of dissemination? Beyond its appearance as a "game designed for entertainment purposes," America's Army is actually a $7 million propaganda and recruitment tool for the U.S. Army. This intention, clearly posted on the game's official
website, is also felt in the mechanics of the game. Thus, before going to challenge others on the Internet, it is advised that the player undergo training sessions in order to be introduced to real military tactics. These training sessions promote, for example, playing in small groups of users which cover and assist each other, just as would real soldiers. In order to assess a player's progress, he or she is assigned a global score entitled "honor", which increases with each successfully completed mission. This scoring system is used to insert another of the American Army's values: the famous "Rules Of Engagement". This is a set of rules that govern when, where, and how force can and should be used by soldiers on a battlefield. A player who has fun killing civilians or fellow teammates would therefore be punished by a deduction of points of honor. Punishment might go as far as being permanently banned from the game in cases of repeated violations. In addition to the integration of real military rules of conduct into the game, a certain world view is also deployed. Although the missions place two groups of players against each other, each team sees themselves as the U.S. military and the opposing team as the enemy. Each player therefore perceives the actions of their team as legitimate, and no one can deliberately play the role of opponents of the U.S. Army. It is perhaps through this last feature that one can best perceive the serious dimension of the game.

For the U.S. Army, this game has the added advantage of preparing potential recruits. These will probably be less surprised by

<figure><img src="image_313.png" /></figure>

<figure><img src="image_314.png" /><figcaption>America's Army</figcaption></figure>
the training methods and fighting techniques taught in real life since this game has given them a foretaste. As for the concept of death – an element that could impede new recruits from joining – we observed that its representation was deliberately watered down: no mutilated bodies or cries of pain. In addition, such an approach allows the game to have an ESRB<fnref n="1" /> rating of “Teen”. *America’s Army* is therefore considered suitable for all persons over the age of 13, allowing the game to broadcast its messages to a wider audience.

Finally, though the principal function of *America's Army* is in the realm of communications, note that this game is also used internally for training purposes. Indeed, the game mechanics are a perfect reflection of the concepts transmitted during training, and using this game as an exercise is perfectly suited to the American military curriculum. It's rumored even that civilians who play this game regularly on the Internet are formidable opponents for soldiers in training.

In short, *America's Army* is a Serious Game which draws heavily on popular games like *Counter-Strike* (1999), to offer great entertainment value, and whose practical function is to spread a message promoting the U.S. Army in order to facilitate its recruitment activity. Though *America's Army* is not the first game to combine a playful and serious dimension, it is, however, the first to do so with such a large budget and to meet with such success. It is therefore generally considered the starting point of the current “Serious Games” trend. Sawyer thus stated that *America's Army* “was the first successful and well-executed serious game that gained total public awareness”. As such, it created an awareness of the emergence of Serious Games and their potential.

### 1.2 RESPONSES TO AMERICA'S Army

The existence of this game and the way in which it is used by the U.S. military has not gone by without raising debate within civil society.

<footnote n="1">1. The American rating system that indicates the minimum recommended age for video games.</footnote>
Beyond the obvious ethical and moral issues<fnref n="1" />, this game has also generated protests from within the military. The most visible are demonstrations where veterans chant the slogan "War is not a game".<fnref n="2" /> However, this has not prevented the Army from continuing the practice by regularly updating the game to add more content and stay on the cutting edge of technology. Official America's Army video game tournaments are organized and sponsored by the military which quickly dispatches army recruiters to the site. Visibly satisfied with the effectiveness of the game in terms of recruitment and communications, the U.S. military has adapted it to media other than the computer. Thus, an Xbox version entitled *America's Army: Rise of a Soldier* (2005) is produced by UbiSoft. A sequel entitled *America's Army: True Soldier* (2007) is produced on the Xbox 360. That same year, GameLoft (subsidiary of UbiSoft) was responsible for a variation of the game for mobile phones, while an arcade version was produced by GlobalVR.

No longer free, these adaptations are enhanced by a solo mode which retraces the experiences of a real soldier who participated in the war in Afghanistan in 2001, further helping to promote the U.S. military.

<figure><img src="image_315.png" /><figcaption>Virtual BattleSpace 2</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_316.png" /><figcaption>MoSBE</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. A thorough analysis of this point can be found, for example, in Bogost, *Persuasive Games*, MIT Press, 2007, which highlights the ideological choices made by games in their representation of conflict, the world and especially the role of war.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. For ex. in 2007, <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqO7almpzE4>.</footnote>
### 1.3 OTHER SERIOUS GAMES DEDICATED TO DEFENSE

America's Army is not the only Serious Game dedicated to the defense sector. We present for example the simulator *Virtual Battlespace 2* (2007) produced by the creators of *Operation Flashpoint* (2001), a war game which has experienced huge success in the entertainment industry. Bohemia Interactive's strategy consists of developing simultaneously “general public” and “professional soldier” versions of its combat simulations. There are also Serious Games designed for tactical and strategic training such as *MoSBE* (2007). This game is intended for both military generals and civil emergency planners. Using topographic maps, a player can quickly recreate any geographical area and manage the “units” deployed there. These can just as easily be fire crews as soldiers.

In the wake initiated by the U.S. military, many other national military organizations have turned towards Serious Games, whether for training or communications purposes. Here we present some European examples.

#### GREAT BRITAIN

The British Army also uses Serious Games for communications and recruitment. *Start Thinking Soldier* (2009) aims at hyper-realism to attract the public's attention. The game is available as four distinct missions that allow the player to portray a soldier in the field. Through first-person view videos, the player is immersed

<figure><img src="image_317.png" /><figcaption>*Start Thinking Soldier*</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_318.png" /></figure>
at the heart of the action. These sequences are punctuated by choices to be made.

For example, faced with a house harboring rebels, the player is given the choice to either enter through the door, blow up a wall, or request an aerial reconnaissance first. Like *America's Army*, the missions here are relatively decontextualized: the why of the conflict is not stated. However, the game does not come down to a series of killings. After having entered the rebels' hideout, the game asks the player to simply identify which objects could be used to make explosives. The game's approach is primarily to remind the player that soldiering involves making quick decisions while keeping one's head. The player is under constant pressure from his or her teammates. The use of video adds to this effect. This Serious Game, like *America's Army*, immerses the player at the heart of the war by playing with the "strong emotions" component. The goal here is to make soldiering attractive.

## FRANCE

For the French Army, the training and communications aspects are not intermixed. Some games are used internally to train troops, while others are used in communications with the general public, particularly for recruiting. This is the case in the game series *Être Marin* (2009). Eight in total, they are intended to present various

<figure><img src="image_319.png" /><figcaption>*Être Marin : La Guerre des Mines*</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_320.png" /><figcaption>Mission Défense</figcaption></figure>
occupations in the navy in an attractive way. For example, *La Guerre des Mines* illustrates the process of demining at sea. At the helm of a ship, the player must locate and identify a bomb, then have it detonated by a team of deminers without harming the rest of the crew. This series of games is based on simple gaming principles combined with high quality technical production. The "serious" dimension of the games is clearly visible by the explicit connection to the reality of the field. Each mission is thus introduced by a video in which a sailor of the given occupation addresses the player. An information link for the occupation in question is then presented during the game. Finally, to facilitate the communications objectives of these games, there are "community website" features. Access to the games requires the prior creation of an avatar whose statistics increase based on performance during the game. It is also possible to "challenge a friend". *Être Marin* meets all the requirements to make a maximum number of people discover the occupation of sailor, with the undisguised aim of encouraging them to enlist in the French Navy.

This series of games was preceded by *Mission Défense* (2005), which has a similar intention: to showcase information from the various army websites in order to encourage young audiences to take an interest. For this, the game combines informational phases and play phases. Initially the player discovers a military base, where he or she can explore the various buildings freely to learn about French military installations. This game also offers an overall objective: to thwart a terrorist attack via four missions. These missions are composed of small games that each demonstrate an occupation linked to the army. For example, the player is led to decipher coded messages, or to save civilians by flying a helicopter.

Beyond these games dedicated to communications and recruitment, other games are used for training. Firstly, there are simulators developed internally, such as JANUS, used for joint strategic combat training, and ROMULUS, which focuses on infantry tactical combat. The French Army also uses Serious Games developed by external specialists. For example, the Montpellier company Script'Game Studio, whose leaders are former military personnel,
developed *INSTINCT*. This game, dedicated to the simulation of ground infantry sections, is currently used by the army. Like many military Serious Game professionals, the studio adapts its simulations for other countries. Thus, IPCA is a version of *INSTINCT* that allows each buyer to customize the application by modeling its own equipment or combat terrains. Cambodia and even Quebec have acquired this product.

The French Army also uses video games from the entertainment industry to train its troops. For a number of years the Army has been using the game *Operation Flashpoint* mentioned above, coupled with the mod *Operation Frenchpoint* (2002–2009) which adds the weapons and vehicles specific to the French Army. The Army's interest in this game is multifold: the product is very well made, the mod is comprehensive since it contains all French military equipment, and finally the price of the set is very attractive. Though "professional" simulators offer equivalent solutions, none do so at such an affordable price. In 2006, the cost of such equipment per computer station was estimated at 140€, broken down as follows: "game license: 20€, graphics card: 60€, RAM: 50€, scroll mouse: 10€".<fnref n="1" /> The *Operation Frenchpoint* mod is free<fnref n="2" />. In comparison, professional simulations are estimated in the tens or even hundreds of thousands of euros.

<figure><img src="image_321.png" /><figcaption>JANUS</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_322.png" /><figcaption>Operation Frenchpoint</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. http://www.abc.terre.defense.gouv.fr/spip.php?article93</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. The mod's professional use by the Army or by entities related to the Defense of free work done by amateur enthusiasts does not go without raising a debate</footnote>
### SWEDEN

We finish this non-exhaustive overview of Serious Games dedicated to defense with the example of Sweden. Instead of focusing on the intensity of warlike field action, the Swedish Army opted for a different approach for its recruitment campaigns. It shows us that such figurative representation is not necessarily the only avenue to explore.

The game *Swedish Armed Forces Recruitment Campaign* (2008) offers four tests. These tests evaluate the user's ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously, spatial perception, memory and concentration. This game makes no direct references to war or violence. By using this approach, the Army aims here to recruit qualified persons who may not have considered working for it. This game attracts users by playing the intellectual challenge card. The idea is to then promote careers in the army by presenting each user the appropriate position based on his or her game results. Visually, this game resembles a computerized version of the "paper" test taken by candidates during military recruitment. This game was probably a conclusive trial run for the Swedish Army, since it continues the initiative by offering more sophisticated Serious Games like *Special Officer Academy* (2008).

within the community of modders. Though some find here certain recognition of the quality of their work, others see it as an unfair exploitation of their labor without equitable compensation.

<figure><img src="image_323.png" /><figcaption>Swedish Armed Forces Recruitment Campaign 2008 (g.) / 2009 (d.)</figcaption></figure>
The following year, *Swedish Armed Forces Recruitment 2009* retained the unusual approach of its predecessors. It still comprises a series of tests, which this time evaluates the player's ability to think and make decisions under stress. The soundscape plays a crucial role in immersing the user in a cold and lifeless hangar. It is in the half-light of this inhospitable place that nine nerve wracking tests take place (identification of threats, emotional response to pictures, etc.). At the end of the game, the lights come back on for a full debriefing. Each test is explained, the expected solution provided and the player's responses evaluated. This time, the screen at the end of the game no longer orients the player to a specific career, but instead only offers the options to play again, submit an application to the army or invite a friend to take the test.

Finally, note that these Swedish Serious Games are part of multimedia communications campaigns (press, television, etc.). Indeed, Serious Games do not necessarily reach all those targeted by such recruitment campaigns. It is useful to also rely on traditional media to bring these Internet games to the general public's attention. For the Swedish Army, it is probably more effective than relying solely on viral marketing.

## 1.4 SERIOUS GAMES AND THE U.S. ARMY

Beyond the games that they commission, the U.S. military plays a predominant role in the emergence of the Serious Game industry in general. Stéphane de Buttet, consultant for the company SimLinx, explains that in 2004, when the first Serious Games Summit opened its doors in Washington, the public was made up of 70% military personnel. The SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) present attended conferences on how to capture funds, particularly from DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency). This organization, under the U.S. Department of Defense, is responsible for disseminating grants related to defense and identifying and promoting innovations from SMEs, a procedure outlined in the directive of the Small Business Act. Actually, in the United States, each department (Defense, Agriculture, Justice, etc.) must dedicate on the whole 10% of its budget to SMEs. The
funds consecrated to SMEs can range from $2,500 to $100,000, and under certain conditions may exceed these amounts, the idea being to encourage their development. This represents substantial budgets currently flooding into this market. This is how the Serious Games *Pulse!!* and *America's Army* receive budgets of several millions of dollars for their development.

Likewise, the Serious Games Showcase is an event sponsored primarily by the Air Force, Navy and Army since 2006. It is a competition that initially promoted the best Serious Games dedicated to defense, but that in 2007 expanded to other markets such as education, industry and health. These various connections between the U.S. military and Serious Games make it that, in the United States, “Serious Games have very strong military connotations”,<fnref n="1" /> states Stéphane de Buttet. Interviews with Chris Crawford, MolleIndustria and Jason Rohrer, grouped in the central chapter of this book, seem to confirm this view.

### 2. ADVERTISING

#### 2.1 ADVERGAMING

Jane Chen and Matthew Ringel, two specialists in communications strategy from the U.S. company KPE, co-wrote in 2001 a white paper entitled “Can Advergaming Be The Future of Interactive Advertising?” In this document, they offered one of the first definitions of this very recent term<fnref n="2" />: “Advergaming is the use of interactive gaming technology to deliver embedded advertising messages to consumers”. While many websites use free games to generate traffic in order to post banner ads surrounding the game, Advergaming goes further by incorporating the brand directly into the game environment. In summary, the commercial message is at the center of gameplay.”

We specify that etymologically the term “Advergaming” is derived from the combination of the words “advertising” and

<footnote n="1">1. http://www.01net.com/article/297653.html</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Determined by seeking publication dates of articles, memoirs and books, scientific in nature or not, dealing with or mentioning the word Advergaming. The term Advergaming has not been identified before 2000, but nevertheless we find traces of its hypernym Advertainment, which combines advertising and entertainment.</footnote>
"game" and therefore is literally an "Advertising Game". Chen and Ringel identified three types of Advergaming to showcase a brand; "Associative", "Illustrative" and "Demonstrative".

The two authors define them as following:

- **Associative**: "The Advergame enhances the brand by associa-
ting the product with the universe or activity offered by the game".

- **Illustrative**: "The Advergame highlights the product itself during gameplay. The product is used as an accessory in order to stimulate user interaction. But the product is not the main component of the game".

- **Demonstrative**: "The Advergame uses all its interactive poten-
tial to enable consumers to test the product in the game itself".

Next we explore these three Advergaming categories to better
understand what they actually refer to. The examples chosen are
all from the automotive industry to best illustrate the differences
between these approaches. Of course, Advergaming is not unique
to this industry.

2.2 AN EXEMPLE OF ASSOCIATIVE ADVERGAMING

Sportura the game (2004)

This game features gameplay based on auto racing. The adver-
tising aspect is introduced by a set of billboards arranged at
regular intervals around the track and displaying a Japanese
watch brand.

<figure><img src="image_324.png" /><figcaption>Sportura the Game</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_325.png" /><figcaption>Volkswagen Drive In</figcaption></figure>
Additional advertising locations are utilized, such as the rear registration plate of the car, which is used to display the name of a car magazine, or even the timer on the game interface which is an illustration of a Japanese watch.

Finally, the logos of all partners who funded the game's production are displayed around the perimeter of the track. This application is described as "associative" because the brands shown do not affect the mechanics of the game whatsoever. The logos could be removed or replaced - it would not change the objectives assigned to the player: go around the track in a minimum amount of time.

### 2.3 AN EXEMPLE OF ILLUSTRATIVE ADVERGAMING

#### Volkswagen Drive In (2007)

In this game, the user is prompted to listen to a set of musical excerpts and must indicate to which decade they belong. The gameplay is therefore based on the quiz principle. A different Volkswagen model is highlighted to illustrate each decade from the 1950's to the 2000's.

As such, the VW Beetle corresponds to the 50's, the Mini-Van to the 60's, etc. The vehicles surround a turntable with LPs of different musical excerpts. While a song is playing, all the vehicles dance. When the user wishes to submit an answer, he or she clicks on one of the vehicles. If the answer is correct, the vehicle plays an excerpt of the melody on its horn while flashing its headlights and bouncing up and down. A balloon is hung on the car to mark the point earned and a new record appears on the turntable. This quiz is designed to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the German car manufacturer. Although the brand is highlighted, the gameplay is not centered on the promotion of different vehicles. These are accessories: an approach that characterizes Illustrative Advergaming.

### 2.4 EXEMPLES OF DEMONSTRATIVE ADVERGAMING

"Demonstrative" type Advergames offer a gameplay built around the properties of the product. Here are several possible approaches, all centered around the automobile.
## AUTOMOBILE RACING

One approach of Demonstrative Advergaming is to use an auto racing game to allow the user to pilot the model that the manufacturer wishes to highlight. We list several such Adver-games: *Volvo S60 Concept: Volvo the game* (2009), *BMW M3 Challenge* (2007), *Toyota Auris Ice Experience* (2007), to name a few. In these various games, automakers rely on 3D game engines. This technology offers a good sense of immersion and allows potential customers to try out virtual vehicles, hopefully instilling the desire to purchase the vehicle down the road. The use of 3D computer graphics creates an association between technological performance and the vehicles presented. Likewise, staging the vehicles in the context of an auto race emphasizes the concepts of power and speed. These facts reinforce the idea that the designers' target audience is predominantly male.

## INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING

Auto racing is only one possible approach that places a particular brand of vehicle at the center of gameplay. In the Adver-game *Agent M09* (2008), the player is a secret agent whose objective is to deliver a Renault Mégane Coupe in less than 15 minutes. However, at no point does the gameplay allow the player to drive the vehicle in question. Instead, the game is an interactive movie where the user must perform a set of tasks based on characteristics of the product: find a secret code whose reference is the size

<figure><img src="image_326.png" /><figcaption>Volvo S60 Concept : Volvo the Game</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_327.png" /><figcaption>Toyota Auris Ice Experience</figcaption></figure>
of the rims and the horsepower of the car, identify the location of air intakes and rear extractors, etc. Though the approach may seem original, might the user feel frustrated at not being allowed to drive the vehicle in at least one phase of the game?

### SERIOUS PLAY

Finally we emphasize that it is also possible to use the Serious Play approach to promote a brand. For example, *Sexy Subaru Forester* (2008) asks the user to play the role of photographer to promote a crossover utility vehicle. After selecting a characteristic of the vehicle, such as the engine, the interior, the driver's seat, etc., a model steps into place. The model is a sumo wrestler who strikes a pose in front of the vehicle. The player sees the scene through the eyepiece of a camera and selects the shot before taking multiple photographs. A voiceover asks the sumo to take on different poses. Once the session is over the user discovers his or her photos, keeping any desired images and editing them using an interface offering a set of digital filters. The user then has the option to share his or her work with friends, to see the creations of others on the Internet or to start a new photo shoot.

This is indeed Serious Play since the player has no ultimate goal to achieve, is not evaluated by the application and is not assigned a score. The only goal is to have fun, while being exposed to different facets of this Japanese vehicle. This type of scenario based on artistic creation leads us to think that Subaru here is targeting women as much as men, unlike the previously mentioned auto racing.

<figure><img src="image_328.png" /><figcaption>Agent M09</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_329.png" /><figcaption>Sexy Subaru Forester</figcaption></figure>
## 2.5 IN-GAME ADVERTISING

In reviewing the three types of Advergames, Associative, Illus-
trative and Demonstrative, we find that their utilitarian dimensions
all have the function of broadcasting a message. This message is
of the persuasive type: it aims to familiarize users with a brand
in order for them to adopt it. However, introducing one or more
brands into a video game is not enough to make it a Serious Game.
One must also ensure that the given application's target market
differs from one of pure entertainment.

The Advergames *Volvo S60 Concept: Volvo the game*, *BMW M3 Challenge* and *Toyota Auris Ice Experience* are distributed free of charge via the Internet. These games were sponsored by car manufacturers for advertising purposes. While these are clearly Serious Games, there are cases where this is more difficult to determine. One example is commercial auto racing video games where the vehicles of a single manufacturer are highlighted. This is the case, among others, with the *Ford Racing* series (2001–2009), *Need for Speed: Porsche Unleashed* (2000), *Porsche Challenge* (1996), *Toyota Celica GT Rally* (1990) or *911 Tiger Shark* (1985), found on consoles, computers and mobile phones. These commercial games appear to be similar to auto racing Advergames such as *Volvo S60 Concept: Volvo the game*. However, are they actually Serious Games?

For us they are not Serious Games. These commercial auto
racing video games target the entertainment market. Here, the

<figure><img src="image_330.png" /><figcaption>Need For Speed : Porsche Unleashed</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_331.png" /><figcaption>Lego Star Wars</figcaption></figure>
introduction of an automotive brand, especially a prestigious one, must be regarded more as the use of a license with the intention of increasing sales of the game. In general, it is the video game publisher that contacts the manufacturer to use its vehicles in virtual racing. It is a strategy analogous to the use of film licenses, like *Star Wars* or *Indiana Jones*, which have resulted in many video games. Note that these licenses can sometimes be associated with another brand, just like *LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game* (2005) and *LEGO Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures* (2008). Though this type of association aims at increasing video game sales, it also helps promote LEGO toys and the films used (box office, DVD, Blu-Ray, VOD, other spin-off merchandise, etc.).

In a similar domain, we present the case of the Belgian publisher Éditions Dupuis who produces Advergames, such as *Ponkey Bong* (2005) or *Ça coince!* (2006), which portray their characters Parker and Badger and whose purpose is to promote their comic books. Again, the question arises of whether these are Serious Games or a case of taking advantage of a license. The multimedia team at Éditions Dupuis prefers to qualify such productions as "games". However, what allows us to group these video games under the "Serious Games" banner is that we know the intention of their designers: the games are developed to promote their comic books. But without this information, it would be impossible to resolve the issue. This again points out the fuzzy border that separates Serious Games and video games.

<figure><img src="image_332.png" /><figcaption>Ponkey Bong</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_333.png" /><figcaption>Ça Coince !</figcaption></figure>
For that matter, there exists a term to describe the idea of
introducing brands and products into a video game: "In-game
Advertising"<fnref n="1" />. It refers, in general, to all possibilities for the
placement of brands or products within a video game without it
impacting the main objective of the application. Clément Bernard
gives us the following description: "'In-game Advertising' comes
in different forms. The most traditional is to incorporate promo-
tional posters/billboards into the virtual environments created by
games [...] a more desired procedure: product placement. This
method is based on the idea of exhibiting products and brands
in films or television programs [...] Video games add a unique
aspect: the player can interact with the product, [...] This goes
from the choice of one's pair of Adidas shoes in *Pro Evolution
Soccer* to use of a Nokia phone in one's favorite *Splinter Cell*"<fnref n="2" />.

WHY IN-GAME ADVERTISING?

First of all, players are not necessarily hostile to the introduc-
tion of advertising into video games. A 2006 study by TNS Sofres,
identifies for example that 83% of players would accept aderti-
sing if it is integrated coherently in an appropriate context (motor
racing circuits, billboards in town, etc.). Product placement would
in turn be tolerated by 76% of players as long as the gameplay
is enriched and unaltered. Video game publishers find these

<figure><img src="image_334.png" /><figcaption>Sims 2: H&M Fashion Stuff</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_335.png" /><figcaption>Sims 2: Ikea Home Stuff</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Bernard, "Video Games: Tomorrow's Advertising Medium", AFJV, 2006.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. http://www.afjv.com/press0609/060922_publicite_jeuxvideo.htm</footnote>
indicators interesting since In-game Advertising is a significant
source of revenue to fund a game's development.

This approach can even lead to exclusive funding from brands.
The brand can lean on a tried and true video game and finance
extensions dedicated solely to it. For example H&M has teamed
up with Electronic Arts to release an extension to *Sims 2* entitled
*Sims 2: H&M Fashion Stuff* (2007). The kit's release in stores is
associated with a design contest and allows users to submit their
work in order to be selected for a virtual fashion show entitled
*Sims 2: H&M Fashion Runway<fnref n="1" />*. On a marketing level, H&M reaches
a section of its target audience, responsive to virtual environ-
ments, who can freely test a wide range of the brand's clothing
on their avatars. Through this approach H&M certainly benefits
from a trendy image, which is crucial for the big brand names in
clothing. It still remains to be seen if this approach helps bring
the game users into the brand's stores.

The retail chain IKEA is also associated with such an exten-
sion. Called *Sims 2: IKEA Home Stuff* (2008), this kit allows users
to decorate their Sims' homes with the Swedish manufacturer's
furniture.

These two examples demonstrate again the fuzzy border
between video games and Serious Games. Indeed, if the sponsors
here fund these extensions for the sole purpose of offering
interactive catalogs of clothing and furniture to increase their
sales volumes, we exit the frame of sole entertainment. To decide,
one would have to ask the designers what the intended purpose
of their games was, as we did with Éditions Dupuis.

2.6 EDUMARKET GAMES

The term "Edumarket Game" refers to Serious Games that
combine aspects of marketing with other utilitarian functions.
Such an approach allows companies and brands to associate their
image with the know-how, values and approaches with which
they wish to be associated. To better understand what this refers
to, let's review some types of Edumarket Games.

<footnote n="1">1. http://thesims2fashionrunway.ea.com/</footnote>
## EDUCAMES AND ADVERGAMES

An Edumarket Game can for example combine an Edugame (educational game) and an Advergame (advertising game) incorporating an educational and advertising dimension.

In this domain, we identify for example *Cisco Binary Game* (2006), intended to educate users about binary encoding. The gameplay prompts the user to transcribe a binary notation into hexadecimal code, or to find the binary code of the hexadecimal notation provided. The different encodings link together like lines of *Tetris* bricks. If the stack reaches the top of the screen, the user loses the game. The playful approach to teaching binary coding allows Cisco Systems to convey the image of a company which, while being at the forefront of technology, is capable of transforming tasks to be accessible and understandable to all.

*Santa's Little Helper* (2005) is distributed by the company ExperiencePoint, which offers management support applications. The objective of the game is to organize Santa Claus' arrival at a shopping mall. To accomplish this, the user must first delegate logistical tasks to 3 elves and then manage various unforeseen events. The game is presented as a series of options to be selected. Once all stages have been completed, Santa Claus arrives and the Serious Game assesses the user's performance. On the utilitarian front, the application provides an introduction to management in crisis situations. On the marketing front, it allows ExperiencePoint to position itself as an expert in the field of marketing support and instill a sense of confidence in potential customers.

<figure><img src="image_336.png" /><figcaption>Cisco Binary Game</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_337.png" /><figcaption>Santa's Little Helper</figcaption></figure>
### INFORMATIONAL GAMES AND ADVERGAMES

Games based on the news can also be associated with marketing, as illustrated by the following two examples:

NewsBreaker (2008) and Newsblaster (2008) were launched by the site MSNBC.com (a partnership between Microsoft and NBC). Both these Serious Games aim to deliver information on current events. NewsBreaker is a game in the classic brick breaker genre. When the user destroys a brick, a news title falls down randomly and must be collected using the paddle. If the user succeeds, the title is added to a list of items that the user is then free to consult. Newsblaster is based on almost in the same principle. Only the nature of the gameplay changes: the brick breaker is replaced by a game based on the principle of Puzzle Bobble (1994). Thus, when the user destroys a set of bubbles, he or she automatically receives information and does not need to collect it. Both games explore new ways of accessing information. The idea here is not to seek a specific news title, but to discover it randomly. On the marketing front, it can convey the idea that MSNBC distinguishes itself from other news channels.

### ACTIVISM GAMES AND ADVERGAMES

For Edumarket Games that combine information or education with Advergaming, the companies involved are generally promoting their main field of activity. In an activism context, the approach is different. The company attempts to associate itself

<figure><img src="image_338.png" /><figcaption>Newsbreaker</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_339.png" /><figcaption>Newsblaster</figcaption></figure>
with values that are at best weakly linked with its fields of exper-
tise. On a marketing front, this approach allows the company to
enhance its image by highlighting values that are not expressed
through its daily activities. For example, a telephone company
may have ecological values, yet the core of its business activi-
ties may not really allow it to express them. As part of a Serious
Game, this becomes possible.

Thus, for example, the French mobile network operator Orange
has produced the game *Hutnet Island* (2009) to express an
environmental message on the preservation of trees. If the target
audience has similar values, it can potentially create emotional
ties between the company and its customers.

With *Planet Green Game* (2007) the chain Starbucks Coffee partners with the association Global Green USA in order to advocate for ecological issues and sensitize the user to eco-citizen actions that limit global warming. The gameplay here is based on a set of mini-games: quizzes, games of skill, memory and observation, puzzles, etc. The objective each time is to lead the user to reflect upon the actions needed to preserve the planet.

Though such associations can undoubtedly help enhance a
brand, others may prove to be counter-productive. This is the
case, for example, for the game *Kiloo contre Sharky* (2006).
The French supermarket chain Intermarché is partnered with an
awareness campaign against pedophilia led by the association
Enfance et Partage. The gameplay of *Kiloo contre Sharky* is based

<figure><img src="image_340.png" /><figcaption>Hutnet Island</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_341.png" /><figcaption>Planet Green Game</figcaption></figure>
on a game of skill where the user must avoid obstacles and collect bonuses: safety pins and Intermarché logos. The quest ends with a fighting game where the user must neutralize an evil kidnapper who has abducted the princess Yubi. The initial intention leading to the production of this Serious Game is more than admirable; however, we question its relevance. To integrate a commercial logo, without any real link to the game's storyline or the message it carries, creates a rupture that does not accent the brand or the message.

### 2.7 VIRAL MARKETING

Viral marketing is a strategy that relies on consumers such that they are themselves distributors of advertising. This principle is, for example, used by Hotmail who attaches a commercial message to every email sent through it. A Serious Game in the form of a computer file or hosted on the Internet can also be easily distributed by email. In the viral marketing approach, the idea is to rely on the attractive component of video games to make each user want to share the application with his or her network.

One of the first companies to have implemented this approach is NVision Design, since renamed NStorm. On April 1998, it broadcast the game *Good Willie Hunting* on the web as part of

<figure><img src="image_342.png" /><figcaption>Kiloo contre Sharky</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_343.png" /><figcaption>Good Willie Hunting</figcaption></figure>
"April Fools' Day". It offers a gameplay based on the principle of "whack-a-mole" (midway game where one taps as fast as possible with a mallet the heads of moles randomly coming out of their burrows), coupled with graphics depicting the personalities involved in the Monica Lewinsky affair.

The mission of *Good Willie Hunting* is to promote in a fun way the young company NVision Design. But why does this Advergame sport the theme of the Monica Lewinsky affair?

This type of Serious Game is based simply on events that are, at any given time, the subject of high media attention in order to attract the interest of users. These events are processed through gameplay intended to cause a reaction in the user on an emotional level (laughter, indignation, etc.). The reaction that the Serious Game designers seek to produce has the goal of pushing the user to spread the application across his or her network. The Serious Game delivers its message in turn to each new user. For *Good Willie Hunting*, this is the coordinates of the company NVision Design. More recently, during the Soccer World Cup 2006, the head butt that Zidane delivered to Materazzi gave rise to similar marketing strategies with the dissemination of the applications *The Real Butthead* (2006) and *Lanzamiento de Italian* (2006).

In 2009, it was the "avian flu" that was the subject of various Serious Games. We recall the Advergame *Le Père Noël a la grippe A* (2009), released at Christmas time by the communication agency

<figure><img src="image_344.png" /><figcaption>The Real ButtHead</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_345.png" /><figcaption>Lanzamiento de Italian</figcaption></figure>
Virtuadz. The game prompts the user to help a sickly Santa deliver his presents while avoiding the nasty virus and retrieving a dose of vaccine at regular intervals. When Santa Claus is late in getting vaccinated or encounters the virus, he dies.

We underline that this game is linked to social networks like Facebook and Twitter. This type of link has become a very common strategy to increase the dissemination of a video game. Indeed, social networks are exactly the right kind of support for the functioning of viral marketing.

Communities can be created around these games to discuss the game or simply to compare scores. As long as a community is present around an application, the application continues to exist. Actually, it appears that this relationship between Advergames and social networking has become irrefutable.

### 3. NEWS GAMING AND POLITICAL GAMES

Some games are based on the news without necessarily intending to raise awareness of a brand.

This is for example the case of *Berlusconi Game* (2009) which invites the player to injure this political figure by dropping small metal cathedrals on him, the object with which Berlusconi was attacked in December 2009. This game has been banned. The authors have expressed their apologies explaining that their

<figure><img src="image_346.png" /><figcaption>Le Père Noël a la Grippe A</figcaption></figure>

Berlusconi, Jeu Flash

Score :

<figure><img src="image_347.png" /></figure>

56.19

<figure><img src="image_348.png" /></figure>

<figure><img src="image_349.png" /><figcaption>Berlusconi Game</figcaption></figure>
intention was purely humoristic and that they did not expect that their game could have political repercussions in Italy.<fnref n="1" />

What are these applications? Are they games only to express oneself on topics related to current events or do they underlie political or other strategies?

### 3.1 VIDEO GAMES TO EXPRESS ONESELF

Gonzalo Frasca is a game designer and former researcher at the Center for Computer Game Research at the Information Technology (IT) University in Copenhagen, Denmark. Frasca is particularly interested in “political games”. According to him, the attacks of September 11, 2001 played a leading role in bringing forth this type of game: “After September 11, a great deal of amateur games appeared on the Internet, about 200 games created with Flash<fnref n="2" />. There were many different ways to kill Osama bin Laden”.<fnref n="3" />

Based on this phenomenon, Frasca sees video games as a way for Internet users to express themselves: “Before, we could write a song, draw a caricature or graffiti, now we can create games – very sophisticated games – even if they do not reach the quality of industrial games. This is a legitimate form of expression, of speaking out”. The researcher references a set of Serious Games that have been made overwhelmingly by amateurs. With few exceptions, the majority of these video games are free, not registered within any economic model. The games are thus distributed freely and the intention of the authors is primarily to broadcast a message, often a subjective one, to the Internet community. Though Frasca evokes a “legitimate form of expression”, we note that some of these “productions promote Nazism” as the political scientist Olivier Mauco points out.<fnref n="4" />

<footnote n="1">1. “Note to players: This game was created for purely humoristic purposes. Political repercussions of this game in Italy are therefore beyond our intentions, and lead us to deny access to this game. We do not condone the attack, and are sorry if we offended certain persons”, Berlusconi-game.com, 2009.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Flash is an authoring software to produce interactive multimedia applications.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Graillat, conference proceedings “De Tron à Matrix: réflexions sur un cinéma d’un genre nouveau”, Toulouse, February 2004.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Mauco, “Les Serious Games: état des lieux de jeux vidéo institutionnalisés”, Séminaire DEL, October 2009.</footnote>
### 3.2 ANALYSIS OF VIDEO GAMES TO EXPRESS ONESELF

In 2001, following the attacks on the World Trade Center, Frasca produced the game *Kabul Kaboom!* The user is prompted to embody an Afghan mother, situated at the bottom of the screen. She can move from left to right to collect hamburgers falling from the sky while avoiding bombs. Frasca explains that this game was produced during the period when "the U.S. was bombing Afghanistan and at the same time sending food to the population". *Kabul Kaboom!* was created during a three hours plane ride. As such, it cannot compete with the production quality of a Serious Game like *America's Army*, which involves industrial production teams. Moreover, a game made in such a short time is intended to have a different mode of utilization: each game is scheduled to last only a few minutes. In general, the user does not play the game again, but should feel the urge to talk about it, to make its existence known. The idea is not to entertain but to focus on distributing the game and the message it conveys.

Though video games to express oneself are mostly produced outside of an economic context, nevertheless, some games offer quality graphics and designs. In September 2003, Frasca launched the website *newsgaming.com*. The idea is to take the paradigm of illustrators who bite with humor into current events for major newspapers, but instead replacing the illustrations with video games. These games are considered "Newsgames" (games based on the news). *September 12th* (2003) is the first game to

<figure><img src="image_350.png" /><figcaption>Kabul Kaboom!</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_351.png" /><figcaption>September 12th</figcaption></figure>
be launched on this site. Designated as a simulation instead of a game, this application features a city in the Middle East where inhabitants walk about. Among them run terrorists armed with rifles. The cursor appears in the form of crosshairs on a scope. The user can decide to fire a missile at any time. The author's intention is that the user attempt to kill the terrorists. Once the missile is launched, the surprise is its size: upon exploding the deadly device has destroyed homes and generated collateral damage. The relatives of the victims come and cry on the bodies of the dead and transform in turn into terrorists. If the user continues to fire, he or she generates again new victims and therefore new terrorists. The message that the author is attempting to communicate is that "violence begets violence". His idea is to denounce the military response which he believes is perhaps not the best solution to the attacks of September 11. To support his message, from the beginning, the author of the application takes care to warn the user: "This is not a game. You can't win and you can't lose. This is a simulation. It has no ending. It has already begun. You can shoot. Or not".

When Gonzalo Frasca evokes the notion of "simulation", it underlies that this application is a video toy. That is to say that the application does not evaluate the player's performance, does not display a score or a screen of victory or defeat. This is a sandbox where the user does what he or she wants without having to attain a particular objective. This is what we designate by the term "Serious Play".

In terms of its production, *September 12th* is not comparable to *Kabul Kaboom!* For one, it has professional level graphics and design. To achieve this, Frasca mobilized friends and fellow designers working on a volunteer basis. The completion of the application required "the full-time work of ten people for three months".

To get his message across, the author attempted to deliberately muddy the waters. He gave his Serious Play the appearance of a shooter game therefore encouraging the user to fire. The cursor in the form of crosshairs is one element that creates this appearance. Though the approach is interesting, the message
is misunderstood by some users. Indeed, according to a study by the site *SeriousGames Opinions.org*<fnref n="1" /> on a panel of about 90 testers, only 50% of them perceived the message the way that Gonzalo Frasca wished to transmit it. The other half on the contrary thought this was simply a game where one must shoot down terrorists and therefore did not find it interesting. Frasca stipulated: "It's very complicated to make a game that transmits a message [...] Players can interpret it however they want, in a very subjective way". If we refer to the work of Eric Lardinois who studies how to instill "playfulness criteria" in commercial games<fnref n="2" />, we find that it heads in the same direction, emphasizing the complexity of the issue: "The player (social actor) never being the same person (the time factor involved) can never approach the game (play situation) in an identical manner". This means that the same person in front of the same Serious Game can interpret the same message in different ways depending on the context in which the application is used (at home, at school, in a business setting, etc.), but also according to his or her state at the time (mood, on vacation or not, alone or in a group, etc.). To these variable parameters are added criteria related to the individual such as his or her culture, level of education, interest in the topic addressed by the Serious Game, gaming practice, etc. All of these parameters, which are by no means exhaustive, have an impact on the perception of the message that the Serious Game's author is attempting to convey. It is therefore important to keep these elements in mind while designing a Serious Game and to not consider the application's user as a simple "receiver"<fnref n="3" />.

Another group of Italian artists also produces professional quality video games to express themselves: MolleIndustria. Since 2004, they have produced half a dozen applications. Topics covered denounce the inhuman conditions of assembly line

<footnote n="1">1. This site allows one to evaluate the reception of Serious Games.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Lardinois, *Le Jeu: outil de communication commerciale, conception de produits et formation des clients*, Ph.D. dissertation in Educational Sciences, University of Paris 13, 2000.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. As defined by "Shannon's model", for an exclusively technical context.</footnote>
work, capitalism pushed to an extreme, the sexual submission of women, society's influence on sexuality or even pedophilia in Catholic clerical circles.

One of this activist group's major achievements is *McDonald's Video Game* (2006). This Serious Game prompts the user to manage the industrial process that leads to the production and sale of the famous fast-food chain's hamburgers. However, the application does not aim to promote the company's brand using an advertising game. On the contrary, this application's intention is to denounce all the transgressions involved in the production of hamburgers for profit: soil depletion due to over-farming, the use of genetically modified soybeans, violation of sanitary standards, etc. Note that this Serious Game is licensed under CreativeCommons which allows the duplication and distribution of the application free of charge provided that the authors are properly cited, no payment is requested and the work is not modified from its original form.

Serious Games of professional quality made by volunteer production teams are still few to date. We identify on the other hand a much larger number of Edumarket Games that connect companies to the messages involved.

## 3.3 VIDEO GAMES FOR SELF-EXPRESSION AND THE POLITICAL DIMENSION

Though we've establish a potential link between video games for self-expression and the business world, we should also

<figure><img src="image_352.png" /><figcaption>McDonald's Video Game</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_353.png" /><figcaption>Operation Pedopriest</figcaption></figure>
explore the political sphere. Gonzalo Frasca uses the term “political game” to describe a video game application intended for self-expression. If we take the case of *Kabul Kaboom!*, *September 12th*, and *McDonald’s Video Game*, we can clearly identify political messages. However, the case of *Berlusconi Game* poses a problem. Is this also a political game even though the authors explain that their intentions were purely “humoristic”? Or is the act of evoking a political figure enough to give the game a political dimension? And what about games that address for example the religious field as done in *PedoPriest* (2008)? Or an ecological domain as in *Clim’Way* (2008)? Or that publicly state one’s resignation from a company, as illustrated by *A Message for 2K Australia* (Woods, 2009)? Or that claim an artistic purpose as done in *Passage* (Rohrer, 2007)? ... Should we also consider these political games? In the end, it seems that the concept of “political game” varies from country to country. Thus in the United States this term has, according to MolleIndustria, a narrower meaning than in Europe.

<figure><img src="image_354.png" /><figcaption>Clim'Way</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_355.png" /><figcaption>A Message for 2K Australia</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_356.png" /><figcaption>Passage</figcaption></figure>
As a result, we have long thought that the term “activism game”
was more likely to cover all these engaged message categories. To
shed light on these perspectives, we spoke with Olivier Mauco<fnref n="1" />,
whose work focuses on politics relating to video games. He
outlines his approaches to and the limits of the terms “activism”
and “political” and shows us again the fuzzy border that separates
video games and Serious Games:

> “To qualify video game applications designed to express engaged messages as ‘activism games’, the difficulties are that [...] games with messages of a politicized nature, or “political games” by my definition, go beyond just Serious Games. In fact by ‘political games’, I include games like *Grand Theft Auto IV* (Rockstar North, 2008), *Bioshock* (2K Games, 2007) or *Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare* (Infinity Ward, 2007) that have identifiable or identified political messages. Political Serious Games are also socially situated, the parties are themselves politicized. This provides a second more institutional level of politicization of the content.

> For me, ‘activism games’ are a special case scenario and include productions undertaken by activists (e.g. political parties members, pro-Obama...), or sometimes by mere sympathizers, but picked up then institutionalized within the framework of political campaigns. As a whole, this term is strongly conditioned by the nature of the video game users, the intentions behind the game and the way in which it will be used within a political competition. What is complicated these days is that politics strongly interfere in everyday life, and try to naturalize ideological ideas, under the guise of ‘common sense’.”

3.4 FINANCED POLITICAL VIDEO GAMES

In the previous sub-chapter, Mauco stated that video games
dedicated solely to the entertainment sector of the market can
also be carriers of politicized messages. To clearly determine
if a video game that expresses an opinion, whether political or
not, falls within the field of Serious Games, a good approach is

<footnote n="1">1. Interview conducted on December 21st, 2009.</footnote>
to identify whether the application in question was subject to funding. If this is the case (if the sponsor is in fact in a market segment other than that of pure entertainment), then we are in the presence of a Serious Game.

Frasca and Ian Bogost thus produced *The Howard Dean for Iowa Game* (2003) to promote Howard Dean, a U.S. presidential candidate in 2003. In France, in 2001, Phillipe Douste-Blazy, then candidate for mayor of Toulouse likewise adopted a strategy based on a video game. In both cases, these are clearly Serious Games with political aims, commissioned and funded by political parties as part of their campaigns. Like business enterprises, political parties also use Edumarket Games to associate their “brand” with the social issues addressed by the game. For example *Constitution the Game* (2005) was produced on behalf of the French political party UDF (Union pour la Démocratie Française) to sensitize young people to the European Constitution. The Serious Game *Cyber-Budget* (2006) was commissioned by Jean-François Copé, then French Minister of Budget, Public Accounts and Civil Service, to explain public finance management to as many people as possible. This game has since been updated several times, based on ministerial changes.

While it seems logical to find political parties among the sponsors of Serious Games with politicized messages, they do not, however, have exclusive rights. Public and private institutions

<figure><img src="image_357.png" /><figcaption>The Howard Dean for Iowa Game</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_358.png" /><figcaption>Game for the Douste-Blazy campaign in Toulouse</figcaption></figure>
also finance such Serious Games. We can cite as an example *Food Force*, available in multiple languages (English, Italian, French, Polish, Chinese, Japanese, etc.). Its purpose is to educate children about humanitarian missions that participate in the fight against hunger. The "brand" associated with this Edumarket Game is none other than the United Nations, through its World Food Program. *Ecoville* (2003–2008) and *Réflexe Planétaire* (2003) were developed on behalf of the French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME). For its part, the Toulouse board of education commissioned *Technocity* to encourage junior high school students to learn about industrial sector trades. Charitable foundations also participate in this segment of the market. For example, *Darfur is Dying* (Susana Ruiz et al., 2004) is a Serious Game denouncing the situation in Darfur. This game was launched by the university television channel mtvU with financial support from the foundations Reebok Human Rights and the International Crisis Group.

Software companies also represent potential sponsors of Serious Games with a politicized nature. We find *PeaceMaker* (2007) in this domain, a strategy game that simulates the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The player is prompted to find solutions to resolve this conflict.

In a similar domain, *Global Conflicts: Palestine* (2007) focuses on the same subject, while *Global Conflicts: Latin America* (2008) focuses on South America.

We have found few games among French publishers for the time being. However, we highlight one old game of a political nature: on May 28th, 1987, a 19 year old German, Matias Rust, takes off from Helsinki in Finland in a Cessna light aircraft. Suddenly he disappears from the radar. He reappears only to land in Moscow's Red Square: in the middle of the Cold War, the young pilot has foiled the Soviet radar by flying at low altitude. Rust explains that he wished to deliver a message of peace. His exploit is reported in international newspapers. The Soviet Army is ridiculed, which leads to the firing of senior military officials. Less than a month after these events, a commercial game recounting this adventure
comes out on the Amstrad CPC 8-bit home computer. Called *Cessna Over Moscow* (1987), this French game invites the player to reproduce Rust's feat. The gameplay allows the user to pilot the Cessna in side view while avoiding various obstacles on the ground, such as trees, houses, hills, etc. The player must also avoid flying too high on pains of being detected by radar and engaged by a MiG. While flying over towns, the player has the option of dropping pamphlets promoting peace. At the same time, the player should consult the flight map and check the fuel gauge at regular intervals. Though this game was considered "boring" by some critics at the time, it's nevertheless noteworthy since it recounts a news event. It is probably one of the first commercial games, and perhaps one of the few commercial games existing to date, offering to transcribe such a recent current event. It was not until the democratization of the Internet that we see the concept of Newsgames (video games based on current events) developed on a large scale.

Finally, since Newsgames are games whose very principle is to deal with a current event, this trend has logically drawn the attention of professional journalists. For example, the American newspaper *The New York Times* occasionally produces video games to illustrate certain journalistic issues. In *Gauging Your Distraction* (2009), the intention is to support an article on the dangers of using mobile phones while driving. The game casts the user, in first person view, as the driver of a GM Lambda launched

<figure><img src="image_359.png" /><figcaption>Darfur is Dying</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_360.png" /><figcaption>Cessna over Moscow</figcaption></figure>
into the fast lane. The road is dotted with toll gates, constitu-
ting obstacles that the player must avoid (some gates are closed
while others are open). Up to that point, the game is not parti-
cularly difficult. But the task quickly becomes more complicated
when the player receives a text message. A mobile phone appears
on the screen, and the player must first read and then respond
to text messages by clicking on the various buttons on the little
phone while continuing to avoid obstacles on the road. Based on
a very simple game principle, this journalistic Newsgame illus-
trates perfectly a driver's decreased attention while sending text
messages. This game supports the article by offering readers a
chance to experience for themselves the situation it describes,
enabling them to better immerse themselves in the context.

While games allow the simulation of dangerous situations
without risk to the reader, they are also a great way to explain
the workings of complex systems. The game *Primaires à Gauche*
(2011) is therefore entrusted with the delicate task of explai-
ning to the daily newspaper *Le Monde* readers the operation of
the elections put on by the French Socialist Party to nominate
its candidate for the French presidential election of 2012. In the
form of a management/strategy game, the player embodies a
candidate in this election. Each candidate has his or her own set
of political issues and multiple supporters, each with a specific
amount of media power. Faced with different circumstances, the
player can send various supporters to debate with personalities
supporting the opposing candidates. The more a supporter parti-
cipates in a debate the more his or her ability to convince voters
decreases, pushing the player to alternate between supporters.
Using this logic, the various parameters influencing the outcome
of the election were modeled into the mechanics of this Serious
Game. The political journalists of *Le Monde* have thus materia-
lized the results of their analysis in the form of a set of game
rules instead of a written text.

4. TEACHING AND TRAINING

Many games already targeted the education sector before
the current Serious Games movement. Though some of these
initiatives are now less visible, their legacy is nevertheless present, like the edutainment or e-learning trends. Consequently, many video games called "educational" are simply updates of old games, such as the latest installments in the series *Adibou* (1991-2009), *Reader Rabbit* (1986-2009) or *Carmen Sandiego* (1985-2009). These games fit well into the definition of Serious Games presented in this book. However, their relatively weak alignment of serious and fun dimensions is one aspect that is often criticized.<fnref n="1" /> The main paradigm of Serious Games is precisely to ensure consistency between these two dimensions so that they enrich each other. Considering the large number of video games claiming an educational nature, we chose here to present only the games that seem to fit into this paradigm. Examples of games related to education but inspired by older trends are presented in Chapter 3 (French version of this book only<fnref n="2" />).

### 4.1 THE EDUCATION ARCADE

It seems only appropriate to call on the expertise of researchers and educators to further develop video games for educational and training purposes. As such, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has a program to improve teacher training. The content of this program benefits from the work of researchers focused on technology at MIT. For example, this program has access to the latest versions of Logo and its famous "Turtle" (2008), that teachers use to introduce children to computer programming. The program director, Eric Klopfer, founded in 2003 a research group baptized The Education Arcade. Its aim is to develop and analyze Serious Games for educational purposes. Experts in their fields like Henry Jenkins, James Paul Gee and Kurt Squire are among the researchers involved in the project. In addition to the production of white papers on the use of video games in a school context, The Education Arcade has also produced several Serious Games with educational purposes.

<footnote n="1">1. Egenfeld-Nielsen, "Overview of research on the educational use of video games", *Digital Kompetanse*, 2006(3), 2006.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. See also Djaouti, Alvarez, Jessel & Rampnoux, "Origins of Serious Games", in Ma, Oikonomou & Jain (eds), Serious Games and Edutainment Applications, Springer, 2011.</footnote>
The first such game, called *Revolution* (2004), allows the player to live a particularly important historical period in the United States: that of the War of Independence of 1775. It comes in the form of a multiplayer role-playing game in which each player embodies a character from a different social class: from slave to dignitary to the patriot blacksmith. This allows students to understand the different perspectives of the conflict, which they can then discuss in class. Indeed, this game runs in sessions of about 45 minutes, making it compatible with an introduction or teacher-lead discussion in addition to playing the game. This first Serious Game produced by the MIT researchers is actually a mod of the role-playing game *Neverwinter Nights* (2002).

After history, The Education Arcade produced *Supercharged!* (2005) to accompany physics lessons. It allows players to steer a ship in three dimensional space based on the properties of electric currents. Knowing the electrical charge of their ship, they must position electrical particles in space in order to guide it to its destination. In a different domain, the project *Caduceus* (2009) aims to both train and inform. It is an online puzzle game, which offers a series of logic tests in a fantasy world where medicine and alchemy live together. The goal of this game, produced for the Children's Hospital Boston, is to increase public awareness within 8-12 year olds of the importance of pediatric medical research. While these are games for "traditional" computer platforms, the research group also uses MIT's expertise to develop educational

<figure><img src="image_361.png" /><figcaption>Revolution</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_362.png" /><figcaption>Supercharged!</figcaption></figure>
games based on Augmented Reality. Their first such game, *Environmental Detective* (2008), is played outdoors and requires the player to conduct an investigation in order to discover the origin of a toxic waste leak.

Finally, the most ambitious project to date produced by The Education Arcade is *Lure of the Labyrinth*, published in 2009. This is an online multiplayer adventure game for learning mathematical basics. Situated in a fantasy world, each player controls an avatar and can engage in a series of small, simple games requiring him or her to call on the fundamentals of mathematics. This game's great strength is its multiplayer component which reinforces the exchange of educational information between students. What's more, the game is intended for use in the classroom, each teacher having the ability to prepare a game session "custom-tailored" to his or her students. The technical aspect is likewise suitable for the material constraints of schools since it is playable directly in a browser. The game's official site also provides worksheets for teachers and parents. This game is funded by Maryland Public Television, a sign of media interest in Internet and gaming teaching aids.

### 4.2 OTHER SERIOUS GAMES RELATED TO ACADEMIC EDUCATION

The Institute of Play is another group of American researchers and teachers whose work focuses on the added value of games

<figure><img src="image_363.png" /><figcaption>Environmental Detective</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_364.png" /><figcaption>Lure of the Labyrinth</figcaption></figure>
in the broader sense for education. Their biggest project is *Quest to Learn*, a primary school opened in 2009 whose curriculum is based on games. In addition to developing new teaching methods, this group also reflects on how to teach game culture.

To this end, the institute has created *Gamestar Mechanic* (2009). This atypical Serious Game aims to sensitize students to the process of creating a game, the game design. It comes in the form of an online adventure game, in which each user plays an avatar. Through his or her explorations, the player unlocks "components" that can then be used to create his or her own games.

A workshop on creating video games allows each player to produce the games that he or she imagines and share them with other site members. This is the paradigm characterizing the recent "Gaming 2.0" trend, which organizes around a single software the ability to create, share and play video games. Designed for classroom use, *Gamestar Mechanic* allows students to express their creativity while learning about the process of making a video game. A substantial user's guide accompanies the game, offering many different avenues for teachers wishing to use it. This project is led by Katie Salen and Eric Zimmerman, renowned researchers in the field of gaming.

*Rome In Danger* (2008) is the spearhead of the private educational platform Caspian Learning. This Serious Game is therefore not intended to be distributed freely to the general public.

<figure><img src="image_365.png" /><figcaption>Gamestar Mechanic</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_366.png" /><figcaption>Rome in Danger</figcaption></figure>
Based on concepts defined in the school curriculum, it covers the historic content on ancient Roman civilization taught in junior high school. In the form of a 3D adventure game, this game casts the user as a "time-cop" whose mission is to safeguard the space-time continuum. In order to do so, the player must explore different places typical of ancient Rome and prevent the evil "Agent X" from changing the course of history. This game is released publicly as a demo by its developer, Caspian Learning, to show the power of their tool for creating Serious Games, Thinking Worlds. Centered on rapid development, this engine can easily create three dimensional adventure games. *Rome in Danger* for example, was developed in just six months. Openly intended to make the creation of video games available, its price (1,500-3,000 euros) unfortunately puts it out of reach for private individuals. Though it targets the professional market, we emphasize that early versions were distributed free to teachers to enable them to create educational Serious Games.

### 4.3 EDUCATIONAL SERIOUS GAMES OUTSIDE OF AN ACADEMIC CONTEXT

We now present Serious Games for educational purposes which are funded and broadcast by TV stations. One of these games, *Ginger Dawn* (2009) has a pixelated graphic appearance and "8-bit" sound quality reminiscent of the golden age of video games. This game challenges players to direct a red-haired character within a village. The goal is to go in search of members of the opposite sex willing to mate. When avatars meet, a baby materializes. The player must generate as many red-haired babies as possible, therefore mate choice is important, appearance being an indication of the likelihood of possessing the "red-haired gene". The time constraint is represented by the sun rising slowly in the sky. Now, the hero happens to be particularly sensitive to the sun's rays. To avoid sunburns, the player must hurry to reach the quota of red-haired babies needed to pass each level. Having read this description, what could possibly be the purpose of this Serious Game?

*Ginger Dawn* discusses genetics with a typical British sense of humor. Humanity is facing a serious problem: the disappearance
of people with red hair. This is because the gene responsible for this hair color is recessive. This means that both parents must possess it for it to be expressed in their offspring. This approach however confuses certain users. The study conducted on this game by *SeriousGamesOpinions.org* reveals that while some players understood the humor behind the game, others believed it was a campaign advocating eugenics to safeguard the existence of red hair!

This Serious Game is part of a large-scale project by the British television station Channel 4 to educate the public about genetics. Channel 4 first organized an Alternate Reality Game (ARG), called *Routes* (2009). This particular type of game consists of immersing players in an “alternative reality” by combining Internet, telephone, newspapers, etc. A team of facilitators is responsible for ensuring the smooth running of the game. *Routes* took place over an eight week period, from January 26th to March 26th, 2009. It begins with a video broadcast on the Internet that informs us of the disappearance, under horrible circumstances, of a famous geneticist. The Internet users have the mission of unraveling the mystery of his death by solving various puzzles and riddles giving them access to “secret information”. For this, they may exchange information with other players via the Internet. Each week a new video is added to the site announcing the next phase of the game, up until its conclusion. To supplement this experience, four Serious Games, including *Ginger Dawn*, are posted on the game’s website. They all aim to sustain this scientific communications

<figure><img src="image_367.png" /><figcaption>Ginger Dawn</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_368.png" /><figcaption>Routes</figcaption></figure>
campaign once the *Routes* program comes to an end. Although based on different gameplay, these four games target the same serious dimension: raising public awareness of genetics and its applications. *Sneeze* (2009) puts the user in the shoes of a person who has a cold. The goal is to infect as many people as possible with a single sneeze. A certain understanding of the mechanisms of viral contamination is therefore required to win this game. *DNA Heroes* (2009) is a clone of *Guitar Hero* (2005) in which the player must match DNA sequences to the beat of the music instead of reproducing notes on a guitar. Finally, *Breeder* (2009) falls into a different domain since it consists of Serious Play. Therefore, there is no goal to reach in this multiplayer game. Each player begins by designing a life form from a basic set of genes. The life form can then attempt to mate with creatures created by other players in order to evolve following Darwin's principles.

*Genomics Digital Lab* (2007) by *SpongeLab Interactive* provides other games on this same theme of genetics. Available by subscription, this site offers online courses in the form of multi-media presentations. These are sometimes supplemented by small video games, such as *Transcription Hero*. As its name suggests, it too is based on a gameplay inspired by *Guitar Hero*: a DNA strand moves across the screen, and the player must transcribe the RNA sequence associated with it by selecting the complementary bases. Though the playful principle brings to mind Channel 4's *DNA Heroes*, the approach is nevertheless different. Indeed,

<figure><img src="image_369.png" /><figcaption>DNA Heroes</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_370.png" /><figcaption>Transcription Hero</figcaption></figure>
Channel 4's game simply dresses up an existing game with a scientific theme, while SpongeLab's game pushes the serious dimension a bit further by illustrating a real mechanism, that of DNA>RNA transcription by RNA polymerase. Far from being in competition, these two games ultimately prove complementary since they target different audiences: Channel 4 seeks to raise public awareness, while Spongelab aims to enhance courses taught in an academic setting.

Channel 4 is not the only television station to use Serious Games. The American channel History (formerly The History Channel) produced *Turf Wars*, mixing paleontology and combat game to promote its documentary series *Jurassic Fight Club*. Hinging on the public's attraction for dinosaurs, each episode of this computer graphics series faces off two prehistoric dinosaurs to illustrate their harsh living conditions. Based on the mechanics that made the classic *Street Fighter II* (1991) such a success, *Turf Wars* asks the user to choose a fighter then combat others in duels to the death. Each protagonist is defined by unique physical characteristics (speed, strength, etc.), and a set of "special moves". But instead of presenting martial arts champions with supernatural powers, this game features seven real life dinosaurs. From Stegosaurus to T-Rex, each is assigned a range of strikes based on its original physical skills. Thus, the poor herbivores tend to receive hits instead of giving them, the nimble Raptor attacks in packs and T-Rex thrashes others easily with its giant jaws. This obvious disparity between the fighting skills of each dinosaur is

<figure><img src="image_371.png" /><figcaption>Turf Wars</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_372.png" /><figcaption>Code of Everand</figcaption></figure>
at the heart of the game. Players quickly notice that their chances of winning vary depending on which dinosaur they choose. They are thus directly confronted with one of the messages of the documentary series highlighted by this game: in the prehistoric jungle, it's better to be at the top of the food chain than all the way down at the bottom.

In another domain, let's look at an initiative by the British Department for Transport. *Code of Everand* (2009) is intended to educate a young audience about the dangers of crossing the road. It is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game which is clearly inspired by *Dofus* (2004). Each player creates an avatar and must complete many quests in a fantasy world criss-crossed by a network of “spirit channels”. The player must regularly cross these channels to get from one place to another. Despite the game's “fantasy” theme, these roads have the same dangers as those of the real world. As such, some places are safer to cross than others. The danger is represented by monsters that travel these roads. If the player tries to cross while a monster passes, he or she must confront it. The higher the road's level of danger, the more the monster is resilient, increasing the player's chances of losing the game. Choosing a “protected” passage is therefore recommended in order to cross. Likewise, it is possible to look right and left before crossing to anticipate the arrival of a monster. From a design point of view, it seems to bring together an educational message and the codes of gaming culture in a particularly coherent way.

### 4.4 SERIOUS GAMES DEDICATED TO CORPORATE TRAINING

In this segment of the market, companies generally use development studios to produce appropriate Serious Games. For example, the French studio Daesign specializes in the development of virtual interview simulations where the user must choose how and with what emotional tone to interact with customers, their superiors or recruiters. Such Serious Games have been developed on behalf of Axa Insurance, BNP-Paribas Bank, Orange mobile phone company, SFR mobile phone company, Renault
automobile manufacturer, etc. After a virtual interview, users are given a report generated by the application evaluating point by point the different stages of the interaction. This report may contain statements on how emotions were managed, the time taken to address certain comments or even mistakes made during the exchanges. It allows the player to step back from his or her interactions; an approach referred to as "distancing" in the education field. Distancing enables a learner to better assimilate the learning experience, retracing his or her path. In our work, we found that some users were taken in by the playful challenge and sometimes lost sight of certain utilitarian dimensions targeted by the application.<fnref n="1" /> Offering a report after the game is therefore an interesting approach to overcome this problem.

Another possible paradigm is to make use of social interaction. In this approach, each learner is considered a potential tutor or teacher for the others.<fnref n="2" /> Here, a multiplayer Serious Game deployed on a local or large scale network usually promotes dialogue between users. These exchanges are likely to produce clarifications of the educational dimension of the game and to promote better long-term recall of the experience. Such

<figure><img src="image_373.png" /><figcaption>Daesign for the Banque cantonale
vaudoise</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_374.png" /><figcaption>PowerUp</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Djaouti et al., "Serious Games & Cultural Heritage: A case study of prehistoric caves", conference proceedings "15th International Conference on Virtual Systems and MultiMedia (VSMM 2009)", Vienna, September 2009.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Modeled after the concept of "proximal zone of development" developed by Lev Vitgotsky.</footnote>
approaches are developed for example in *PowerUp* (2007) by IBM. Here the intended users are schoolchildren who must cooperate to save a planet suffering from rampant pollution. The idea is to find solutions based on sustainable energy production. This challenge brings together classes that meet through this Serious Game. In France, the Serious Game *SOS-21: le jeu* (2009) also offers a multiplayer approach addressing the theme of sustainable development. In a more adult domain, the Edumarket Game *Flee the Skip* (2009) invites users to test their sense of solidarity through a platform game. Four players are prompted to figure out how to escape from a dumpster by combining the strengths and weaknesses of each. As it stands, this game can certainly be used in courses devoted to management.

Finally, some companies rely on Serious Games to aid in the recruitment of qualified staff. The French aerospace and defense company Thales distributes the Serious Game *Moonshield* (2008) to increase its profile among young engineers, encouraging them to join the group. *Moonshield* is a real time strategy game, in which the user builds and manages a lunar base. The base's mission is to protect the Earth from collisions with the many asteroids that threaten it. As such, the player must incorporate devices capable of deflecting or destroying these asteroids as part of his or her base. But the player must also ensure the welfare of the settlers that work on the base, and therefore find the best allocation of resources ranging from energy to food. This fictional scenario allows the user to discover actual technology

<figure><img src="image_375.png" /><figcaption>Flee the Skip</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_376.png" /><figcaption>Moonshield</figcaption></figure>
developed by Thales. Jean-Louis Onnis, recruitment director for this company, reports: “As the game progresses, the user discovers, in a fun way, around thirty of our technologies, but also, indirectly, our activities and occupations”.<fnref n="1" /> After one year of operation, Thales seems satisfied with the results of this initiative: of the 120,000 people who have tried the game, nearly 80,000 then visited the company’s recruitment site. Moreover, Thales’ objective to become known abroad seems to have been achieved: 70% of players reside outside France.

This example illustrates how the game's sponsor defines “serious” objectives. Assessing the impact of the game on target users is a necessary step in determining if these objectives are being met for any widely distributed game.

## 5. HEALTH CARE

The health care sector is another field containing many Serious Games. The newer Serious Games are varied enough to justify the use of the “G/P/S” classifying system. First, we will divide these games using the “Scope (S)” criterion. This gives two major families: games destined for the general public (patients) and those destined for professionals (doctors, researchers, etc.). We will then use the “Purpose (P)” criterion to differentiate the main functions covered by Serious Games dedicated to the health care sector:

- Disseminate an **educational type message**

- Disseminate an **informational type message**

- Disseminate a **persuasive type message**

- Provide **cerebral type training**

- Provide **physical type training**

We’ll now review various Serious Games, classified according to these different criteria. This is obviously not an exhaustive list but is intended to illustrate the wide variety of topics covered by Serious Games dedicated to health care.

<footnote n="1">1. http://delicesdelavieblogspotcom/2009/12moonfield-le-serious-game-de-thales.html</footnote>
### 5.1 SERIOUS GAMES FOR THE GENERAL PUBLIC

The games presented here are aimed at the general public, whether it be patients with a particular disease or anyone wanting to stay healthy.

#### SERIOUS GAMES WITH AN EDUCATIONAL MESSAGE

Among the many Serious Games dedicated to education on health related topics, we first present *Re-Mission* (2006). It is designed for teenagers with cancer. This is a well crafted shooter game, taking place inside the human body. At the helm of chemo-therapy personified, the user's mission is to eradicate various types of cancer cells from different patients. This Serious Game is successfully used in hospitals to explain to young patients the operating principle of their treatments. Its goal is to initiate a dialogue about their disease.

There are other games that deliver both an educational and a preventative message, such as games dedicated to healthy eating habits. In this domain, *Fat World* (2007) aims to educate children about the harmful effects of poor nutrition. This message is embedded in a playful structure, where the user is cast as an avatar living in a town where activities are limited. As a result, there is great temptation to consume food in order to pass the time. Healthy eating habits are not found exclusively in the “video game” type of “Gameplay (G)” (with objectives to attain). Next we present *La Machine à Caca* (Setruk Jocelyn, 2007), which is based

<figure><img src="image_377.png" /><figcaption>Re-Mission</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_378.png" /><figcaption>Fat World</figcaption></figure>
on a «video toy» type of structure. This Serious Play relies on a humoristic tone to present the basics of a balanced diet, asking users to find the right foods to “make a beautiful poop”.

## SERIOUS GAMES WITH AN INFORMATIONAL MESSAGE

The informational type message of Serious Games dedicated to health care often falls into the “preventative” domain. In this field, the first games that usually come to mind are those related to “at-risk behavior”. For example, Sortez-Revenez (2007), launched by France's road safety initiative “Sécurité routière”, is intended to educate young people about the risks of drinking and driving, especially after a festive night out. This game casts the user as a young person organizing a party for his or her birthday and who must reconcile “fun atmosphere” and “a safe return home for the guests”. The game spreads its message by cleverly mixing instructive and fun phases. Continuing on the theme of alcohol, we present the three games in the series *Happy Night Club* (2009) developed on behalf of the city of Nantes. The message here is: “drink, but not too much!”. Based on the “point & click” type of adventure game, each episode casts the player as a different character for an adventure set in the same nightclub. The first episode has the player as a secret agent who must infiltrate the club's nightlife in order to get information. The agent must at the same time moderate his or her alcohol consumption to be able to complete the mission. Playing the humor card, this game allows players to drink to a fair degree of excess. However, it shows

<figure><img src="image_379.png" /><figcaption>La Machine à Caca</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_380.png" /><figcaption>Sortez-Revenez</figcaption></figure>
in the irreparable consequences for the success of the mission, and even the survival of his or her allies (blunders being quick to arrival). The second episode casts the player as a young partygoer who wakes up after a "memory blackout". Based on objects found here and there and conversations with friends, the player must try to reconstruct the course of the evening, including rather embarrassing moments. In the third episode, the player plays a reporter who must write an article on the opening of a new nightclub. The temptations to have the character drink are numerous during the various interviews he or she must conduct. The idea is to know how to balance sobriety and being sociable.

Prevention campaigns can also be based on Serious Play. Thus, *Free Hugs* (2007), launched by the French Ministry of Health and Solidarity, aims to educate the public about discrimination towards people with HIV. The game allows each user to exchange virtual "free hugs" with other players. The hugs are counted as a testament to the level of support expressed by players. This Serious Play is inspired by the Australian concept that has individuals spontaneously offer hugs to people in a public place, usually with a sign marked "Free Hugs".

In a different domain, *Deliver the Net* (2008) offers a message combining humanitarian efforts and health-related prevention. This game, released by the United Nations, is intended to educate Internet users about the spread of malaria by mosquitoes in Africa. The application puts the user in control of a volunteer on a moped to distribute mosquito nets to the inhabitants of different villages.

<figure><img src="image_381.png" /><figcaption>Free Hugs</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_382.png" /><figcaption>Happy Night Club</figcaption></figure>
## SERIOUS GAMES WITH A PERSUASIVE MESSAGE

In this domain, we present the example of the CD-Rom *Petites Histoires de Dents* (2002) which educates children about dental hygiene. This product is distributed free to schools and offers a set of five Serious Games through which it delivers its preventative message. Note that this product is also an opportunity for the Pierre Fabre laboratory to highlight its corporate name.

When a Serious Game combines a brand or a marketing approach with a preventive message in this way, it is then considered an "Edumarket Game".

## BRAIN TRAINING SERIOUS GAMES

There is a very large number of games dedicated to "brain training", or similar categories. This type of game, belonging to the Brain Fitness market, is extremely popular in Asia<fnref n="1" /> and is experiencing great success in the United States and Europe. In the United States alone the Brain Fitness software market increased from $100 million in 2005 to $225 million in 2007². Nintendo's *Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!* (2005) is currently the best known in this category, with over 17 million copies sold worldwide. It was quickly followed by games such as *Brain Boost* (2005), *Big Brain Academy* (2006) and *Brain Challenge* (2007–2009). However, the video game industry is not alone in trying its hand at Brain Fitness. The fourteen brain training games in the series *Lumosity* (2008)

<figure><img src="image_383.png" /><figcaption>Deliver the Net</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_384.png" /><figcaption>Petites Histoires de Dents</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Fujimoto, "Serious Games in Japan", "3rd Serious Games Sessions Europe" conference, Lyon, December 2007.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. SharpBrains study, 2008.</footnote>
are produced by a research team at Stanford University. In France, the company Scientific Brain Training (SBT) provides *HAPPYneuron* (2008), a website bringing together some forty games designed to stimulate the brain. These applications, produced by scientists and physicians, specifically target the elderly.

### PHYSICAL TRAINING SERIOUS GAMES

We group here all the games in the genre Exergaming¹, intended to make the user participate in physical activity. Wii Fit (2007) is currently the most well known among them. This game, however,

1. Contraction of the terms "exercise" and "gaming".

<figure><img src="image_385.png" /><figcaption>Brain Age</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_386.png" /><figcaption>HAPPYneuron</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_387.png" /><figcaption>Lumosity</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_388.png" /><figcaption>Brain Challenge</figcaption></figure>
was preceded by other Serious Games such as *YourSelf! Fitness* (2004). Note that the latter is not associated with a device like the *Wii Fit Balance Board*.

By 1998 the first games in the series *Dance Dance Revolution* (1998–2009) appeared in Japan, requiring the player to jump on a floor mat to play. Though extremely popular in Asia, this type of game remains relatively unknown to the general public in Europe and the United States. Note however that the State of Virginia in 2006 launched an education program to equip primary schools with these games, in order to fight against obesity. This

<figure><img src="image_389.png" /><figcaption>YourSelf!Fitness</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_390.png" /></figure>

<figure><img src="image_391.png" /><figcaption>Wii Fit</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_392.png" /><figcaption>*Dance Dance Revolution* : arcade (I.) / game (r.)</figcaption></figure>
is a perfect example of Serious gaming. The game was originally developed for entertainment purposes in video arcades and was only later used for health care purposes.

Recently, the scope of application of Serious Games designed for physical training was expanded through the social network Fitocracy.com (2012). Each user of this site is invited to complete challenges such as doing 30 sit-ups or walking 5km daily. Users are awarded “medals” that will be visible on their profiles upon completion of these tasks. Since the site is a social network, you can easily see if your friends are exercising more than you, motivating you to participate in regular physical activity. This social network therefore takes codes and mechanics coming from video games and applies them to real life. This kind of reversal is now described using the term “Gamification”. Beyond the health care sector, “Gamification” has piqued great interest in the business sector, in the hopes of “making employees’ work more motivating” using mechanics specific to games.

### 5.2 SERIOUS GAMES AIMED AT PROFESSIONALS

The games presented here are aimed at health care professionals, whether it's a communications campaign aimed at practitioners or tools to train surgeons. There are significantly fewer of these games than those aimed at the general public.

#### SERIOUS GAMES WITH AN EDUCATIONAL MESSAGE

Among the few Serious Games designed to train health care professionals, one of the most publicized is *Pulse!!* (2007). This application is funded by the U.S. government and represents one of the market's most expensive Serious Games to date: $10 million were invested in its development. In its essence this product seems to fit into the same category as *Medical Clinical Simulator*. However, the budgetary difference between these two games leads to enormous differences in its form. Thus, where *Medical Clinical Simulator* presents information in a text format so that the user can determine a diagnosis, *Pulse!!* immerses the player in a three-dimensional universe aiming at photo-realism. The user can thus follow the journey of patients through
a virtual hospital. It's possible to examine each patient directly, ask him or her questions, or send him or her for exams such as an MRI. The user must therefore not only manage the intellectual part of the diagnosis, but also the relational aspect. His or her "bedside manner" thus affects the quality of the information he or she obtains. Also, some patients with serious conditions must be treated quickly, adding a stress factor to the game. Crisis and mass casualty situations, such as a bioterrorist attack or an automobile accident, are other possibilities in the game in order to prepare doctors for the worst case scenarios.

In a different domain, *Hospital Waste Disposal* (2007) educates health care professionals in hospital waste management. The user is invited to drop the different types of items (human remains, surgical materials, etc.) into the correct recycling bins.

## SERIOUS GAMES WITH AN INFORMATIONAL MESSAGE

For now we have not identified any Serious Games that fit into this category. We believe that a game on the prevention of nosocomial infections aimed at health care workers would fit perfectly into this category.

## SERIOUS GAMES WITH A PERSUASIVE MESSAGE

We can also identify advertising games aimed at practitioners. The company Medpict (Publicis Group) for example specializes in this area. This company develops games such as *Campto* (2008) or *Multaq* (2008), to promote the drugs after which they

<figure><img src="image_393.png" /><figcaption>Pulse!!</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_394.png" /><figcaption>Hospital Waste Disposal</figcaption></figure>
were named. Adapted to have a very short playing time (a few minutes), these Serious Games are used in exhibitions dedicated to the medical sector. The target users are practitioners to whom laboratories wish to advertise their range of drugs. The playing time doesn't need to be very long since these games are primarily a tool to capture the attention of potential customers.

### SERIOUS GAMES FOR THERAPEUTIC TRAINING

To date, there are very few Serious Games with therapeutic purposes to accompany practitioners in their work. One of the few representatives of this category is the project *Flower For All* (Chritin, Van Lancker, Falourd and Bouzin, 2007). This is a game for people with cystic fibrosis. Specifically, this game aims to make chest physical therapy using the “Flutter” less unpleasant. The Flutter is a device where the user has to blow out following a specific protocol in order to help loosen the sticky mucus in his or her lungs. The game aptly combines a fun and a therapeutic structure in the form of an auto racing game. The player's breath is used to move the car forward. The game's level of difficulty is customizable to fit the physical conditions of different patients. We note that this initiative is the result of amateurs, in this case a mother whose child suffers from cystic fibrosis and three volunteer engineers.

Still in the domain of therapeutic tools, *Free Dive* (2006) is used in pediatrics in the United States. This is a scuba diving game designed to be extremely immersive. The goal is to divert the attention of

<figure><img src="image_395.png" /><figcaption>Campto</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_396.png" /><figcaption>Multaq</figcaption></figure>
sick children during particularly painful medical procedures. The game is also used with children with chronic illnesses to try to give them a few moments of escape from their everyday.

Finally, we include *Projet Autisme* (Sehaba & Estraillier, 2005) initiated by the University of La Rochelle<fnref n="1" />. This academic research project led to the production of a Serious Game used by the department of child psychiatry of La Rochelle hospital. The specificity of this educational game, designed for children with autism, lies in its ability to be adapted to the patients. In addition to the fun mechanics, the application provides a sophisticated system for analyzing the behavior of the player (game response time, analysis of facial expression, etc.) allowing a practitioner to tailor the game in real time to better support the child in his or her game.

## 5.3 ASSESSMENT OF SERIOUS GAMES DEDICATED TO THE HEALTH CARE SECTOR

We note that the general public has the largest supply of Serious Games dedicated to the health care sector. Professionals for their part seem to have a smaller supply, with the prevention sector currently being little exploited if at all. However this supply may be in an upward trend, if one considers the amount invested to develop *Pulse!!* and the increasing number of editorial and advertising games that we list since 2007.

<figure><img src="image_397.png" /><figcaption>Flower For All : interface (I.) / Flutter (r.)</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Sehaba, *Exécution adaptive par observation et analyse de et analyse de comportements Application à des logiciels interactifs pour des enfants autistes*, Ph.D. dissertation in Computer Science, University of La Rochelle, 2005.</footnote>
### 6. EVEN MORE FIELDS...

We have just reviewed the defense, advertising, information and politics, education and training, and finally health care sectors. But this list is obviously not exhaustive. In their book, Chen & Michael1 identify Serious Games dedicated to the religious and artistic fields. From the latter field emerged, for example, the creations of Jason Rohrer (see chap. 4.4): *Passage* (2007), *Cultivation* (2007), *Immortality* (2008), etc. At the conference "Serious Games Summit Europe" held in Lyon on December 4th, 2006, the English company PIXELearning added, in turn, museums, charities, institutions, etc. The company has developed a list of different types of Serious Games it was asked to develop. This includes the training of auditors, the fundamentals of marketing, introduction to finance, sales processes, telemarketing, workplace safety, career management, etc., about twenty different applications in all. And this is not an exhaustive list. Finally, at the time of the call for Serious Game projects launched by the French Ministry of the Economy and Monetary Policy under the leadership of Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet in the first half of 2009, other sectors were identified such as accessibility, citizenship, sustainable development, tourism, transportation, urban planning, etc.

In view of these inventories drawn up by researchers, businesses, and government ministries, we find that Serious Games are used in an increasing number of fields, with ever expanding possibilities for future use. Perhaps in the end it would be easier to see if there are any fields to which they cannot be applied.

<footnote n="1">1. Chen & Michael, *Serious Games: Games that Educate, Train and Inform*, Thomson Course Technology, 2005.</footnote>
CHAPTER III
ORIGINS OF SERIOUS GAMES

In light of the examples from the previous chapter, Serious Games appear to be a recent phenomenon. However, we can question whether they really represent the “first attempt” at using video games for serious purposes.

The current definition of “Serious Games” appears to follow the lead set by Sawyer & Rejeski.<fnref n="1" /> However, the oxymoron “Serious Games” was used with a similar meaning before the publication of this white paper. Therefore, we will first review the origins of this term and analyse how it evolved to designate “games that do not have entertainment, enjoyment or fun as their primary purpose”.<fnref n="2" />

Moreover, the idea of using games, and more specifically video games, to deal with serious matters is also older than we would at first think. According to Sawyer: “[*America’s Army*] was the first successful and well-executed serious game that gained total public awareness”.<fnref n="3" /> But games matching the definition drawn by Sawyer were released long before *America’s Army* (2002). Actually, we can even suppose that some of the first video games were designed to serve serious purposes. We will review these

<footnote n="1">1. *Serious Games: Improving Public Policy Through Game-based Learning and Simulation*, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, 2002.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Michael & Chen, *Serious Games: Games That Educate, Train, and Inform*, 1st ed., Course Technology PTR, 2005.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Gudmundsen, "Movement aims to get serious about games", *USA Today* (USA, May 19, 2006), <http://www.usatoday.com/tech/gaming/2006-05-19-serious-games_x.htm>.</footnote>
pioneer video games in detail before broadening the scope of our study to analyse the variations of Serious Games releases from 1951 to 2011.

We hope that this information will help the reader to understand the origins of the current wave of Serious Games.

## 1. ORIGINS OF THE SERIOUS GAME OXYMORON

Current research on the use of games outside of entertainment may raise a debate about "Serious Games" being an oxymoron. Indeed, video games have been demonstrated to be useful in education,<fnref n="1" /> defense,<fnref n="2" /> healthcare<fnref n="3" />... and so on. According to these references, we could argue that all games are "serious" and that the "Serious Games" term is not really an oxymoron.

However, if we consider the historical origins of this term and how it reached the gaming field, we believe it was meant to be an oxymoron. For example, we can trace the use of this term back to the Renaissance. Neo-Platonists used the term "serio ludere" to refer to the use of light-hearted humour in literature dealing with serious matters.<fnref n="4" /> A similar idea can be found in the Swedish novel *Den Allvarsamma Leken*, whose English title is *The Serious Game*.<fnref n="5" /> Written in 1912, this novel tackles the delicate topic of adultery. The "playful" side of cheating is put in opposition with the "serious" consequences of adultery. Here, the "Serious Game" oxymoron stresses the differences between adultery and the usual definition of games, such as the one coined by Huizinga<fnref n="6" />: "A free activity standing quite consciously outside 'ordinary' life as being 'not serious', but at the same time absorbing the player intensely and utterly". A similar use of the "Serious Game" oxymoron can be used to describe the professional practice of games and

<footnote n="1">1. Gee, *What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy*. Second Edition: Revised and Updated Edition, Palgrave Macmillan, 2007.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Caspian Learning, *Serious Games in Defense Education*, Caspian Learning, November 4, 2008.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Lieberman, "Management of chronic pediatric diseases with interactive health games: theory and research findings", *The Journal of Ambulatory Care Management* 24, no. 1 (January 2001): 26-38.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Manning, *The Emblem*, Reaktion Books, 2004.</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5. Soderberg, *The Serious Game*, 1st ed., Marion Boyars Publishers Ltd, 2001.</footnote>

<footnote n="6">6. Huizinga, *Homo ludens*, Gallimard, 1951.</footnote>
sports. For example, in the autobiographical *Not Dark Yet: A Very Funny Book About a Very Serious Game*, Mike Harfield<fnref n="1" /> tells about his 30 year long career as a professional cricket player.

The first use of the "Serious Game" oxymoron with a meaning close to its current use seems to be in *Serious Games*, a book written by Clark Abt.<fnref n="2" /> Abt is a researcher who worked in an U.S. research laboratory during the Cold War.<fnref n="3" /> One of his goals was to use games for training and education. He actually designed several computer games such as *T.E.M.P.E.R*. (Raytheon, 1961). This game was used by military officers to study the Cold War conflict on a worldwide scale. But in his book, Abt also provides examples of "non-digital" Serious Games, such as math-related games to be used in schools. Abt also gives a clear definition of "Serious Games": "Games may be played seriously or casually. We are concerned with serious games in the sense that these games have an explicit and carefully thought-out educational purpose and are not intended to be played primarily for amusement. This does not mean that serious games are not, or should not be, entertaining".

Another example of a non-digital game explicitly labelled as "Serious Game" is presented in the book *The New Alexandria Simulation: A Serious Game of State and Local Politics*.<fnref n="4" /> This book explains how to play a game designed to teach the basics of the U.S. political mechanisms. Despite its age, this game is still used in classrooms, thanks to several reissues since 2004. It is also interesting to note that Jansiewicz kept his game in a non-digital format, because he thinks that only human interactions can convey the complexity of politics.<fnref n="5" /> Kahn & Perez<fnref n="6" /> have conducted

<footnote n="1">1. Harfield, *Not Dark Yet: A Very Funny Book About a Very Serious Game*, Loose Chippings Books, 2008.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. *Serious Games*, Viking Press, 1970.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Abt Associates, "Biography of Clark C. Abt," 2005, <http://www.abtassociates.com/page.cfm?PageID=104>.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Jansiewicz, *The New Alexandria Simulation: A Serious Game of State and Local Politics*, Canfield Press, 1973.</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5. Jansiewicz, "The Game of Politics - Frequently Asked Questions", 2011, <http://www gameofpolitics com/f_a_q.htm>.</footnote>

<footnote n="6">6. "The Game of Politics Simulation: An Exploratory Study", *Journal of Political Science Education* 5, no. 4 (2009): 332.</footnote>
a study on this game and observed that it improved the learning outcome for students in an "Introduction to American Politics" course.

Another example of "Serious Games" used as an oxymoron is the title of an artistic exhibition held in the Barbican Art Gallery from 1996 to 1997. The companion book of this exhibition<fnref n="1" /> presents the work of eight artists who sought to make a link between video games and modern art. One of these artists, Regina Corwell, created an interactive art piece to ask if video games can be used as a mean of artistic expression: "If we shift from the fun of games with their overt or covert messages about power, speed, command and control to those same messages delivered for expediency and with urgency by the military and to the efficiency of the office workplace and the various heritage in consumer culture, are art and culture ready to squarely face this complex mosaic"?

This latter example limits the scope of "Serious Games" to video games, in a similar fashion to most current definitions.<fnref n="2" /> Indeed, all these definitions seem to be influenced by the vision of Ben Sawyer and his white paper entitled *Serious Games: Improving Public Policy through Game-based Learning and Simulation*.<fnref n="3" /> As the title suggests, this paper is a call to use the technology and knowledge from the entertainment video game industry to improve game-based simulations in public organisations. However, this paper does not mention the oxymoron "Serious Games" one single time apart from in its title. Indeed, Sawyer first wrote his paper under the title *Improving Public Policy through Game Based Learning and Simulations*. But his colleague David Rejeski felt that this title lacked something. Rejeski was aware of a book entitled *Serious Play*<fnref n="4" />, which details how private companies use simulations to

<footnote n="1">1. Graham, *Serious Games: Art, Interaction, Technology*, Barbican Art Gallery in association with Tyne & Wear Museums, 1996.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Michael & Chen, *Serious Games*; Zyda, "From Visual Simulation to Virtual Reality to Games", *Computer* 38, no. 9 (2005): 25-32.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Sawyer & Rejeski, *Serious Games: Improving Public Policy Through Game-based Learning and Simulation*.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Schrage, *Serious Play: How the World's Best Companies Simulate to Innovate*, 1er ed., Harvard Business Press, 1999.</footnote>
stimulate innovation. In reference to this book, Rejeski decided to modify the title of Sawyer's white paper to include the oxymoron "Serious Games." This paper was quickly followed by the creation of the Serious Games Initiative, an association to promote the use of games for serious purposes. Thus, the oxymoron "Serious Games" was gaining some momentum in the minds of many people.<fnref n="1" /> By chance, 2002 was also the release date of *America's Army*, a game that Sawyer considers as "[...] the first successful and well-executed serious game that gained total public awareness".<fnref n="2" /> The conjunction of *America's Army's* popular success and Sawyer & Rejeski's efforts to promote such games, makes us identify 2002 as the starting point of the "current wave" of Serious Games.

Later, Sawyer refined his definition of "Serious Games" to "any meaningful use of computerized game/game industry resources whose chief mission is not entertainment".<fnref n="3" /> Michael Zyda, who participated in the development of *America's Army*, proposed a similar definition<fnref n="4" />: "A mental contest, played with a computer in accordance with specific rules, that uses entertainment, to further government or corporate training, education, health, public policy, and strategic communication objectives". Nowadays, most Serious Games that are released tend to follow this line by sticking to the use of digital games, instead of following the broader definition of "Serious Games" for both digital and non-digital games introduced in the 70's.

## 2. WERE VIDEO GAMES SOLELY MEANT FOR ENTERTAINMENT?

Although the current wave of Serious Games appears to begin in 2002, many games were designed for serious purposes before this date. Abt's book features many earlier "Serious Games",

<footnote n="1">1. Sawyer, "Foreword: From Virtual U to Serious Game to Something Bigger," in Ritterfeld, Cody, & Vorderer (ed), *Serious Games: Mechanisms and Effects*, 1st ed., Routledge, 2009.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Gudmundsen, "Movement aims to get serious about games".</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Sawyer, "The 'Serious Games' Landscape," presented at the Instructional & Research Technology Symposium for Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Camden, USA, 2007.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Zyda, "From Visual Simulation to Virtual Reality to Games".</footnote>
including some examples of computer-based games. If we stick to current definitions, any digital game that was "designed for a purpose going beyond entertainment" can be considered a Serious Game. In popular culture, *Pong* (1972) is usually considered as the first video game. If it is unquestionably the first video game to have embraced a massive commercial success, it is not 'the' first video game per se.<fnref n="1" /> Among the video games invented before *Pong*, some titles are not designed for entertainment but for serious purposes. In the chronological order of their appearance, these serious purposes are: to illustrate a scientific research study, to train professionals and to broadcast a message.

## 2.1 EARLY DIGITAL GAMES DESIGNED TO ILLUSTRATE A SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH STUDY

The first example in this category comes from England during the invention of the first computers. Created in 1951 by Ferranti, the Manchester Mark I is the first computer to have been publicly commercialized. It supports several programs created by researchers in computer science.<fnref n="2" /> For example, Dietrich Prinz programmed a chess game that can 'play' against a human, at least for the latter moves before checkmate.<fnref n="3" /> The first game able to play a full game of chess was released in 1958 for the IBM 704 computer.<fnref n="4" /> In a similar vein, Christopher Stratchey developed a checkers game in 1951 for the Pilot ACE computer. Unfortunately, this game required too much memory for the Pilot ACE to be able to run it properly. Stratchey then recreated his program for the Manchester Mark I.<fnref n="5" /> All of these computer games were created

<footnote n="1">1. Barton & Loguidice, "The History of *Pong*: Avoid Missing Game to Start Industry," January 9, 2009, <http://www.gamasutra.com/view/feature/3900/the_history_of_pong_avoid_missing_.php?print=1>.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Copeland, "A Brief History of Computing," June 2000, <http://www.alanturing.net/turing_archive/pages/Reference%20Articles/BriefHistofComp.html>.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Wall, "Biography of Dietrich Prinz," February 2009.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4 Bernstein et al., "A Chess Playing Program for the IBM 704," in *Managing Requirements Knowledge, International Workshop on*, vol. 0, Los Alamitos, CA, USA: IEEE Computer Society, 1958, 157.</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5. Jackson, "Christopher Strachey: A Personal Recollection," *Higher Order Symbol. Comput.* 13 (April 2000): 73-74.</footnote>
by scientists to do research in computer science, especially in the artificial intelligence field.<fnref n="1" />

Last but not least, the United Kingdom is also the birthplace of what is currently considered as the first video game in history, *OXO*.<fnref n="2" /> Also known as *Noughts and Crosses*, it is a tic-tac-toe game created by Alexander Douglas for the Cambridge University's EDSAC computer. The particularity of this game lies in its input and output devices. Unlike aforementioned examples, this game displays a tic-tac-toe grid on a CRT screen. This screen was originally built as a memory monitor for the EDSAC. But by manipulating the memory of the computer with his program, Douglas succeeded in displaying a tic-tac-toe grid on it. He also used the rotary phone dial plugged into the computer as a rudimentary "gamepad". Each cell in the grid is numbered from 1 to 9. To select a cell and place a nought or a cross, the human player simply has to dial the corresponding number on the phone. This game was designed to illustrate a research thesis in computer science on "human-computer interface".<fnref n="3" />

Additional examples of such games for research can be found in the neighbourhood of *Spacewar!* This game is widely regarded

<figure><img src="image_398.png" /><figcaption>OXO (emulation)</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_399.png" /><figcaption>Spacewar!</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Newell, Shaw, & Simon, *Chess-Playing Program and the problem of Complexity*, RAND Corporation, September 4, 1958.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Donovan, *Replay: The History of Video Games*, Yellow Ant Media Ltd, 2010.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Cohen, "OXO aka Noughts and Crosses - The First Video Game," *About.com: Classic Video Games*, October 30, 2009, <http://classicgames.about.com/od/computergames/p/OXOProfile.htm>.</footnote>
as the first video game solely designed for entertainment.<fnref n="1" /> It was created by a group of hackers at the MIT. Alongside this game, other programs were created, such as *Qubic*, a game that looks like a three-dimensional tic-tac-toe. It was programmed by Bill Daly in order support his masters thesis in computer science.<fnref n="2" />

## 2.2 EARLY DIGITAL GAMES DESIGNED TO TRAIN PROFESSIONALS

During the Cold War, the U.S. army invested a lot of money in research. Numerous projects from this period led to technologies that are now widespread in our daily lives, such as computers or the Internet. However, many of the first computer programs were created to serve military purposes. From ballistics computations to resource management, the U.S. army was very familiar with computer simulations. Meanwhile, military officers around the world were using "war games" for training purposes.<fnref n="3" /> These two influences formed the idea of creating computer-based war games in research departments.<fnref n="4" />

**HUTSPIEL** is a very good example of such games. Created in 1955, this strategy war game allows two human players to experiment with the impact of nuclear weapons on a global battlefield. The OTAN fights against the URSS in a fictional - but highly probable at the time - battle along the Rhine. This game is highly detailed. It simulates ammunition and fuel supply for each unit controlled by the two players.<fnref n="5" /> **HUTSPIEL** was invented by the Operations Research Office (ORO), a research centre conducted by the John Hopkins University. This centre was closed down in 1961 in favour of the Research Analysis Corporation (RAC), which pursued most of its research projects. These two research centres conducted many

<footnote n="1">1. Kent, *The Ultimate History of Video Games*, 1st ed., Three Rivers Press, 2001.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Daly, "Computer Strategies for the Game of *Qubic*", Master thesis, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 1961.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Halter, *From Sun Tzu to Xbox: War and Video Games*, Thunder's Mouth Press, 2006.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Montfort, *Twisty Little Passages: An Approach to Interactive Fiction*, The MIT Press, 2005.</footnote>

<footnote n="5">5. Harrison Jr., *Computer-Aided Information Systems for Gaming*, Research Analysis Corporation, September 1964.</footnote>
studies on the use of computer games for training purposes.¹
Besides *HUTSPIEL*, *NEWS* (Naval Electronic Warfare Simulator) was
designed in 1958 to simulate naval battles. In the early 60's, the
RAC built *THEATERSPIEL*, an improved version of *HUTSPIEL*.²

Several similar games were created during the 60's, mainly
under the command of the Joint War Games Agency.³ This section
of the U.S. Army was dedicated to the use of games for military
purposes. *T.E.M.P.E.R.*, the Cold-War simulation game created in
1961 by a team led by Clark Abt, was created for this agency.
Abt later founded his own company, Abt Associates, to create
similar games. For instance, *ARPA-AGILE COIN GAME* simulates an
internal revolutionary conflict in a country.⁴ These strategy games
represent the first step to more complex simulation models used
for tactical evaluation, such as *CARMONETTE*.⁵

1. Research Analysis Corporation, *RAC Publications List*, Research Analysis Corporation, October 1, 1965.

2. Harrison Jr., *Computer-Aided Information Systems for Gaming*.

3. Banister, "The Case for Cold War Gaming in the Military Services," *Air University Review*, July 1967, July-August 1967 edition, <http://www.airpower.au.af.mil/airchro nicles/aureview/1967/jul-aug/banister.html>.

4. Abt Associates, *Counter-Insurgency Game Design Feasibility and Evaluation Study*, ARPA, Pentagon, November 1965.

5. Dondero, *A Hierarchy of Combat Analysis Models*, General Research Corporation, January 1973.

<figure><img src="image_400.png" /><figcaption>Univac Scientific for *THEATERSPIEL*</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_401.png" /><figcaption>GEDA computer for *HUTSPIEL*</figcaption></figure>
Alongside such military-related games, the RAC also designed training computer games for civilians. For example, in 1956 they built a series of games called *American Management Association Games*. This collection of turn-based strategy games casts the players as managers of a product firm. They compete against each other in order to earn as much money as possible within 40 turns of play.<fnref n="1" />

Obviously, none of these games was available to the general public, and the little information we can find about them today comes from unclassified military documents. We can however consider them as being the ancestors of the simulation video games that appeared on personal computers in the 80's, either with military topics<fnref n="2" /> or not.<fnref n="3" />

## 2.3 EARLY DIGITAL GAMES DESIGNED TO BROADCAST A MESSAGE

Games can also convey a particular message. In 1951, Ferranti built a computer called NIMROD that could play only one single game: the game of *NIM*. In this math-based game, each player picks matches from a pile. The player who takes the last one looses. While NIMROD represents an important step for computer science, it was not designed to do scientific research. Its sole purpose was to be a live advertisement for its constructor. Indeed, this large computer was built to be shown during the "Festival of Britain".<fnref n="4" /> It was an impressive piece, but it did not use a CRT display. Instead, the current state of play was displayed through a set of coloured lights. A first set of lights was built into a small control panel, so players could see the remaining number of matches whilst pressing buttons to play. Another set of lights was built into the front part of the computer itself, so that visitors could watch the game even if they were far away from the control

<footnote n="1">1. Harrison Jr., *Computer-Aided Information Systems for Gaming*.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Dunnigan, *The Complete Wargames Handbook: How to Play, Design, and Find Them*, Rev Sub., Quill, 1992, <http://www.hyw.com/books/wargameshandbook/contents.htm>.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Wolf, *The Video Game Explosion: A History from Pong to Playstation and Beyond*, Greenwood Press, 2007.</footnote>

<footnote n="4">4. Montfort, *Twisty Little Passages*.</footnote>
panel. This computer was so successful during the festival that it was also shown during industrial fairs in Germany and in Toronto.<fnref n="1" /> However, despite its popular success during these three events, this game failed to broadcast its message about the technical expertise of Ferranti. As told by John Makepeace Bennet, the inventor of NIMROD<fnref n="2" />: "The machine was a great success but not quite in the way intended, as I discovered during my time as spruiker on the Festival stand. Most of the public were quite happy to gawk at the flashing lights and be impressed. A few took an interest in the algorithm and even persisted to the point of beating the machine at the game. Only occasionally did we receive any evidence that our real message about the basics of programming had been understood".

In a similar vein, *Tennis for Two* also aims to broadcast a message to the general public. This tennis game is played from a side view with simulated gravity. It was created in 1958 by William Higinbotham, an American nuclear physicist working at the Brookhaven National Laboratory.<fnref n="3" /> During this Cold War era, the general public was not really at ease with scientific research, especially with laboratories working on nuclear projects. In order

<figure><img src="image_402.png" /><figcaption>NIMROD</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_403.png" /><figcaption>Players at the
NIMROD control panel</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Keith Smillie, *Some Topics in Computing*, Keith Smillie, 2010, <http://webdocs.cs.ualberta.ca/~smillie/Topics/Topics.html>.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Bennett et al., *Computing in Australia: The Development Of A Profession*, Hale & Iremonger, 1994.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Poole, *Trigger Happy*, Fourth Estate, 2001.</footnote>
to reassure the neighbouring population, the Brookhaven National Laboratory regularly organized guided tours. However, Higinbotham found these tours quite boring. He then decided to create a computer game to improve these guided tours<fnref n="1" />: “It might liven up the place to have a game that people could play, and which would convey the message that our scientific endeavors have relevance for society”. This game was successfully displayed for two years at the laboratory before being dismantled. Although it would later be used as a reference during legal battles for the paternity of the invention of video games,<fnref n="2" /> its sole purpose was to broadcast a reassuring message to the civilians living near the nuclear research laboratory. We can also note that Higinbotham was a recognized physicist in the scientific community. Like other researchers involved in the Manhattan project, he spent most of his life fighting against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. Besides the quality of his scientific works and his ethical engagement, Higinbotham illustrates the close relationship between the technological progress due to the Cold War and the field of video games.<fnref n="3" />

<figure><img src="image_404.png" /><figcaption>*Tennis for Two*: screen (l.) / on a stand (r.)</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Anderson, "Who Really Invented The Video Game?", *Creative Computing Video & Arcade Games*, 1983.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Kent, *The Ultimate History of Video Games*.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. Wilson, *The bomb and the computer*, 1st Edition, Barrie & Rockliff the Cresset P, 1968.</footnote>
## 2.4 DID SERIOUS GAMES APPEAR BEFORE ENTERTAINMENT VIDEO GAMES?

All the games presented thus far were non-commercial. However, some of the first video games available in stores were also designed for purposes that went beyond entertainment. The first home video game console, the Magnavox Odyssey (Baer, 1972), was shipped with both entertainment games (*Tennis*, *Haunted House*, *Roulette...*) and educational games (*Analogic*, *States*, *Simon Says...*). Its inventor, Ralph Baer, was working for an U.S. Defense contractor, Sanders Associates. While Sanders accepted to let his employee release a console for the entertainment market, Baer quickly imagined 'serious' applications of his technology. He improved his "light-gun" technology to design gun-shooting games for training purposes. His Interactive Video Training System series uses real weapons - such as LAW or STINGER rocket launchers - as devices to play with rail-shooting games. These games were proposed for training to military forces, but also to police departments.<fnref n="1" />

Nowadays, most video games are solely designed for entertainment purposes.<fnref n="2" /> But in the light of all these examples, it can be argued that entertainment video games only appeared after the first digital "Serious Games".

## 3. THE ANCESTORS OF CURRENT SERIOUS GAMES

Following these pioneering experiences, many video games were released to support serious purposes before the current wave of "Serious Games". Below are six examples of such games for a wide range of domains.

### 3.1 EDUCATION

One of the most famous ancestors of current Serious Games can be found in the field of Education. *The Oregon Trail* (1971) started as a text-only game created by three History teachers: Don Rawitsch, Bill Heinemann and Paul Dillenberger. It casts the

<footnote n="1">1. Baer, *Videogames: In the Beginning*, Rolenta Press, 2005.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. ESA, *Essential Facts About the Computer and Video Game Industry*, ESA, 2010.</footnote>
player as an American pilgrim in 1848, whose goal is to reach Oregon in order to settle down. The road to Oregon is full of traps, but the game is enriched with information related to this period of American History. This game was 'published' by the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC). This institution helped teachers from Minnesota to use computers for teaching. *The Oregon Trail* was so popular with students (and teachers) that many upgrades have been released. In 1978 a graphical version of the game was released in open-source format. It was improved and released commercially in 1985. This game was followed by several sequels – *The Oregon Trail II* (1996), *The Oregon Trail: 3rd Edition* (1997) – and spin-offs – *The Amazon Trail* (1993), *The Africa Trail* (1997). But the original game is still popular today thanks to mobile phone versions and a Facebook application. Ultimately, this game clearly shows that an "educational" or "serious" game is not necessarily the opposite to a "popular and commercially successful" game.

## 3.2 HEALTHCARE

*Captain Novolin* (1992) is designed to teach kids how to manage diabetes. This game lets you play as a diabetic superhero, who must take care of the glucose-level in his blood while beating evil junk food aliens. This platform game 'hijacks' the well-know "collectable bonuses" mechanism to broadcast a message. The bonuses that the hero can collect are all food items. So, if the hero collects too many of them he risks feeling sick due to a high

<figure><img src="image_405.png" /><figcaption>The Oregon Trail</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_406.png" /><figcaption>Captain Novolin</figcaption></figure>
level of glucose in his blood. Hopefully, before each level, a nutritionist tells players how many food items they are allowed to eat. Players also have to manage their insulin. This game and three other health-related titles were released for the Super Nintendo console by the same company, Raya Systems. While they were not labelled as "Serious Games", several research studies have been conducted to analyse their effects on children.<fnref n="1" /> For example, the game *Packy & Marlon* (1994), similar to *Captain Novolin* with a two-player mode, was analysed in a clinical trial.<fnref n="2" /> The group of children who were presented with this game was observed to be better at managing their diabetes. The number of cases where these children had to go to the hospital due to a glucose crisis decreased by 77% compared with the group who did not play it. The study concludes that the games helped the children to learn how to manage insulin and to have healthy meals in order to prevent glucose-related crises.

### 3.3 DEFENSE

Apart from the games produced for the Joint War Games Agency and before the release of *America's Army*, the U.S. Army showed a high interest in entertainment video games for its training

<figure><img src="image_407.png" /><figcaption>Battlezone</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_408.png" /><figcaption>The Bradley Trainer</figcaption></figure>

<footnote n="1">1. Lieberman, "Management of chronic pediatric diseases with interactive health games".</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Brown et al., "Educational video game for juvenile diabetes: results of a controlled trial", *Informatics for Health and Social Care* 22, no. 1 (1997): 77-89.</footnote>
purposes. One of the most famous examples is *The Bradley Trainer* (1981). Also known as *Military Battlezone* or *Army Battlezone*, this game is a customised version of *Battlezone* (1980). The original game casts the player as a tank in a 3D world, and asks him to shoot down opposing vehicles. The U.S. Army hired Atari to create a more realistic version of this game so they could use it as a training tool. Instead of a fictional tank, the player is now controlling the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, a military ground vehicle armed with a chain-gun and a canon. The player must shoot down opposing helicopters and tanks by firing the weapons of this real vehicle. The realism of the ballistics simulation has been improved to match the training purpose of this game.<fnref n="1" /> Although Atari accepted to create this customized version of its game for the U.S. Army, several of its employees were clearly against it, including Ed Rotberg, the designer of *Battlezone*<fnref n="2" />: "We didn't want anything to do with the military. I was doing games. I didn't want to train people to kill." Though anecdotal, this reaction illustrates the cultural differences between the field of entertainment video games and the current "Serious Games" industry.

### 3.4 ART & CULTURE

*Versailles 1685* (1997), by Cryo, is the flagship of the "cultural entertainment" video games wave. Such games merge entertainment and cultural education. This example is set in Versailles during the reign of Louis XIV. The player must investigate to identify who is threatening to destroy Versailles. They can freely move inside this beautiful place, talk with historical characters, and learn about the paintings and arts of this era. This title received a warm reception in Europe with more than 300.000 copies sold. It opened the way for similar titles with different historical periods, such as *Egypt 1156 BC Tomb of the Pharaoh* (1997), *Byzantine: The Betrayal* (1997), *China: the Forbidden City* (1998), *Pilgrim: Faith As A Weapon* (1998), *Vikings* (1998), *Rome: Caesar's Will* (2000)...

<footnote n="1">1. Hague, *Halcyon Days*, James Hague, 1997, <http://www.dadgum.com/halcyon/>.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. Kent, *The Ultimate History of Video Games*.</footnote>
## 3.5 RELIGION

Captain Bible in the Dome of Darkness (1994) is an adventure-action video game designed to teach Christian religion. In a distant future, the player is cast as a hero in a city full of robots telling “lies” (e.g. “You don’t have to serve either God or the devil, you can be your own master”). The player must navigate through the city and seek verses from the Bible. These verses can counter the “lies” told by the robots in order to defeat them. Like many entertainment titles of the same period, this game was distributed both as shareware and retail versions.

## 3.6 CORPORATE TRAINING AND ADVERTISING

Last but not least, Pepsi Invaders (1983) is an original example of a video game used as a corporate management tool. This game

<figure><img src="image_409.png" /><figcaption>Versailles : Complot à la Cour du Roi Soleil</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_410.png" /><figcaption>PEPSI Invaders</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_411.png" /><figcaption>Super Noah's Ark 3D</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_412.png" /><figcaption>Kool-Aid Man</figcaption></figure>
plays exactly in the same way as *Space Invaders* (1978), but aliens are replaced by the letters P-E-P-S-I. This game was created for the sales employees of Coca-Cola. Play sessions are limited to 3 minutes, in order to prevent them spending too much time playing. Coca-Cola thought this game would be a good motivational tool for its employees, and a way to strengthen its competitiveness against Pepsi. Besides this unique example, many food-related brands also used video games as advertising tools, especially with console-based titles. For instance, *Kool Aid Man* (1983) promotes Kool Aid drinks; *M.C. Kids* (1991) is a platform game set in the famous fast-food universe; *Chex Quest* (1996) is a first-person shooter that helped to sell many Chex cereal boxes...

## 3.7 THE NUMEROUS ANCESTORS OF SERIOUS GAMES

As we can see, these six examples clearly match the current definitions of “Serious Games”, though they were not using this label. We can complete these illustrative examples by some quantitative data about the number of such ancestors of Serious Games. While far from complete, we have referenced a total number of 2218 Serious Games. To check whether a video game can be considered a “Serious Game”, we simply verified that it matches the definitions coined by Sawyer,<fnref n="1" /> Zyda<fnref n="2" /> and Chen & Michael.<fnref n="3" />

As seen in *figure 1* (next page), the number of games released each year regularly increases, with a high peak at the end of the 2000’s. As we consider that 2002 is the starting point of the current wave of Serious Games, it means that we have a corpus of 1265 Serious Games. We also have a total of 953 ancestors of Serious Games (43% of our total corpus).

<footnote n="1">1. “The ‘Serious Games’ Landscape”; *Serious Games: Improving Public Policy Through Game-based Learning and Simulation*.</footnote>

<footnote n="2">2. “From Visual Simulation to Virtual Reality to Games”.</footnote>

<footnote n="3">3. *Serious Games*.</footnote>
<figure><img src="image_413.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 1. Number of "Serious Games" released each year [2218 games]</figcaption></figure>