# A New Measure for Serious Games Evaluation: Gaming Educational Balanced (GEB) Model
## 2 Materials and Methods
### Previous Serious Games Studies: MDA and 4 PEG Models  
To start developing the GEB model, a literature review was carried out on previous studies that had developed quantitative metrics for serious games. The chosen terms were \"serious games AND metric OR rubric\". Scopus gave 241 results, while Springer showed 397. However, the screening process of these 638 results only resulted in one eligible option: the 4 PEG theory [10]. There were some studies [12; 13] that compiled important elements of game design, but none offered a quantitative metric to measure them and, therefore, they were not useful for this paper. The 4 PEG theory considers both educational content and gameplay. The author also developed the Magic Bullet concept, that explained the need to find the right balance between the game context and the learning context [14]. Finally, available resources for classroom applications are also taken into account. The theory establishes a set of measures for the different components, resulting in a total score out of 100 that values the instructional capacity of the game. The model also classified four categories of learning: (1) Things that the game developers deliberately design and that can be learnt; (2) things that must be learnt to achieve the goal of the game that will usually be a subset of the first category; (3) external learning outside of the game; and, (4) coincidental learning, which includes any other knowledge triggered by the game. The purpose of this theory was to perform a structured analysis through its components and subsections that are shown in Figure 1. The results constituted an assessment of both commercial and serious games and their potential as learning instruments within the classroom. The percentages evaluated in the 4 PEG theory are explained below. Figure 1: Component of 4 PEG Model. The fun of the game and the gaming experience was rated under the first pillar: Gameplay and Aesthetics. This section represented 30% of the overall rating and was considered important, because, if the player feels no pleasure, engagement with the game will be harder. The total percentage was divided between six aspects, each of equal value. Any surprising content and general adaptiveness to the genre was measured under Content and Originality. Every possible action that the player can perform, its logic and its difficulty were assessed under Game Mechanics. The transition throughout the story and the different levels were rated under Game Progression. The attractiveness of the graphic display and its appeal for the game genre and type of desired player were valued under Artistic design. Settings and Characters refer to the adaptiveness of these components to the total experience. Audio refers to a review of the adjustment of music and sounds to the gameplay and represents an evaluation of its appeal to the player. These aspects of the gameplay, although not wrong, were not well defined according to the most current research. For this reason, it was decided to replace this section with the MDA framework [9]. Game design tends to refuse a common methodology for the development of serious games. However, a recent study [15] defines MDA as the closest approach to a unified framework. This theory defines the main characteristics that affect the gameplay and its engagement from the perspectives of both the designer and the player. The objective is to elicit emotional responses that assist comprehension of the learning content. The layers that form this model are: (1) mechanics: all possible player actions and their representations; (2) dynamics: predictable runtime behaviors that emerge from mechanics; (3) aesthetics: audiovisual responses that evoke emotions in the player [15]. Other works have been determining which elements are needed in these three layers, such as the Dynamical Model of Gamification of Learning (DMGL) [16]. This work links every MDA feature to the sensations required to attract users.