作者：Ross Smith

1961年，Martin Graetz，Stephen Russell以及Wayne Wiitanen编写了PDP-1程序并以此创造出《SpaceWar!》——它被称为世界上第一款真正意义上的电子游戏。1972年，Nolan Bushnell创造了《PONG》并享誉世界。随后在1977年和1980年《太空入侵者》和《吃豆人》相继问世，并且在10年后，名为马里奥和路易吉的两个水管工人也在《大金刚》中初次登场并名声大震。我个人最喜欢的一款游戏《Robotron 2084》诞生于1982年，尾随其后的是另外一款非常优秀的游戏《Madden Football》（1984）。很多玩家应该也还记得1993年第一次玩《毁灭战士》的场景吧，还有1999年的《职业滑板高手》，以及2001年《光晕》出现后掀起的在线比赛狂潮也都还让人印象深刻。这些早前的游戏都非常优秀，并且除了这些游戏外还有无数游戏共同改变了我们日常生活的娱乐方式，并塑造了我们现在所面对的更加有趣的世界。

如果下载《宝石迷阵》的人数甚至多于1491年的欧洲人口。《FIFA 11》在2010年10月份发行后的五天内便售出260万份。

我希望你们能够花点事件去重温《PONG》，《Breakout》或者《女吃豆人》，那时你便能够发现其实很多基本的游戏设计原则都是永恒的（并不会因为时间发展而改变），尽管如今的计算机效能大大提高了，并且我们也面对着更多拥有华丽图像的游戏选择，但是重新体验过后仍然会觉得这些游戏非常有趣。

这些著名游戏的设计投入各不相同，但对于我们今天能否发行一款成功的游戏仍具有深刻的影响，并且通过吸取它们的经验教训能够帮助我们创造出更加优秀的游戏。

TechCrunch于最近介绍了SCVNGR这家公司——他们基于现实世界的挑战创造出一款成功的手机游戏，同时他们还使用一份游戏设计“纸牌”创造了许多优秀的游戏。在这些纸牌上共呈现出47种不同的游戏机制，我们可以将其混合搭配而创造出不同游戏类型的基础。

出于好奇，让我们先在此挑选一些研究游戏与工作是如何应用其中的机制，并从一些混合例子中观察它们是如何实践于一些相类似的设计分类中，并取得怎样的结果。

1.成就

定义：完成某些任务的虚拟或物理感受。这种感受常常被当成是一种奖励。

游戏中的例子：徽章，级别，奖赏，分数以及其它可以被当成奖励的奖励。

工作中的例子：月度最佳员工奖励，停车位，嘉许状，咖啡券

混合故事例子：《Foldit》（游戏邦注：一个实验性的蛋白质折叠电子游戏）中的“Foldit: Citizen Scientists”活动，让玩家能够“共同思考”治疗癌症的方法。

为了调动玩家在游戏中的竞争意识，游戏从一开始便慢慢提升每个关卡的难度。当玩家重组了一个蛋白质时，游戏便会根据他们所折叠的蛋白质状况进行评分。玩家会为了能在每个谜题中获得高分而不断努力，直到能够攀升至玩家排行榜顶端。

3.避免惩罚

定义：不是通过奖励诱导玩家进行游戏，而是让他们学会躲避惩罚。在限定时间内完成特定关卡中的任务。

游戏中的例子：为了保持平稳而每30秒钟按压控制杆。

工作中的例子：努力以较高的质量完成工作从而不需要在周末的时候加班。在电话响起3声之内接起电话，便能够有效地防止客户的流失。

如今领导别人的一个基本策略可以用4个字简要概略：“做或不做。”我们是基于规则，法律，政策，程序，指南以及指令去领导自己的员工，并且我们这么做也是希望能够提高效率效率并获得控制权。有时候这种方法是可行的，但是这种可行性却维持不了多久。特别是从长期来看，它甚至会产生反效果。即你的员工将会认为自己不需要再进行任何思考而封闭自己的大脑。

6.快乐工作

定义：这是指游戏能够让你因为在游戏中“工作”而感到快乐，并不只是为了放松。毕竟，人类是一种会因为努力工作而获得进步的群体，可以说我们一直致力于一些有意义且有回报的工作。

游戏中的例子：Jane McGonical在Ted Talk中说道《魔兽世界》的玩家平均每周会投入22小时于游戏中，并且通常是在自己完成了一整天的工作后再进行游戏。这些玩家总是希望能够在这里努力地完成任务，他们甚至会比面对现实工作还投入游戏，因为他们能够在游戏世界中感受到“工作的快乐”。

工作中的例子：当参加一项伟大的项目时，人们不会感觉到时间飞梭。“心流”理论。

如果工作中处处充满乐趣，我想没有人会拒绝工作吧。很多人都承认如果自己所从事的工作充满更多创造性内容，他们便能够更有效率地完成工作。而在游戏中也是相同的道理——如果玩家面对的是更具有创造性的活动，他们便会更加积极主动地进行任务。所以为何不在工作中添加这些乐趣因子呢？

尽管创造性能够让工作变得更加有趣，但是很多企业都还未意识到它的重要性。如果企业的高级管理员总是墨守成规，那就真正剥夺了创造者在工作上的乐趣。

只有明确员工的角色他们才能在此找到自己的目标。尽管他们的功能性技能还不够强大，但是他们却会为了配得上自己的角色而投入更多努力去学习技能。如此也就使得员工会更加忠实于自己的公司，并不断提高自己的工作效能；除此之外因为员工拥有不同的技能背景，也就能够为公司提出更多具有创造性的想法和问题，从而让公司能够变得更具有创造性。

13.跨情境式排行榜

定义：当排名机制应用于多种游戏情景中时便会出现这种跨情境式排行榜。玩家总是认为这种排行榜不够公正，即并非所有玩家都能够获得“均等的”获胜机会。

游戏中的例子：玩家总是被随机放到三条路径中的一条。而优胜者是指获得最高分数的玩家（如最快穿越路径）。因为玩家只能在一条路径中行走（并不能自己进行选择），他们便会感到游戏的不公平。

工作中的例子：年度绩效评估以及固定奖励预算

面向公司内部的一些小部门去分配风险资本管理职责，从而赋予员工更多创新自由并推动他们拥有更强大的责任感。这种方法能够有效地处理一些复杂公司内部的交流以及风险管理问题。

14.非奖励因素

定义：是指使用处罚以推动玩家改变某种行为的游戏元素

游戏中的例子：失去生命值，超速监视区

工作中的例子：“绩效改进”规划，因为疏忽而扣薪或失去奖金

糟糕的会议确实很让人头疼。很多管理者会将自己50%的时间投入于会议上，但是他们也总是在抱怨自己这50%的时间等于完全浪费了。如此看来作为公司中薪酬最高的群体他们1年中至少有12周的时间是在干白活。所以我们应该想出一个适当的解决方法帮助进步的领导者和管理人员能够更加有效率地面对各种会议。

17.非凡的意义

定义：如果游戏能让玩家觉得自己正在挑战一些非常了不起的内容，那便能够有效地调动他们的积极性。

游戏中的例子：Jane McGonical在Ted Talk上说道，《魔兽世界》围绕着每个玩家的情节线以及“非凡意义”结果也不断地影响着玩家在游戏以外的生活，甚至形成了世界上第二大Wiki平台以让玩家在此挑战属于自己的任务并创造出具有“时代意义”的结果。

工作中的例子：公司愿景宣言（如果做的好的话）

人们总是会为自己设定各种各样的目的，所以我们必须重视目的。目的中总是包括着描述，时间范围，状态以及相关打算等内容，基于目的我们便能更有方向地进行发展。并且比起负载着各种内容，目的更像是一个节点，人们能够附加于此而不断前进。所以说目的的力量非常强大。

28.修改器

定义：是指能够影响其它行动的一大元素。一般来讲当玩家完成了一系列挑战或核心功能时便能够获得修改器。

游戏中的例子：X2修改器能够让你在采取下个行动时获得双倍积分。

工作中的例子：培训计划，工具以及过程重组，实习，助学金

混合故事例子：21种乐趣——你属于哪一种？

乐趣属性：一种能够分析并重新设计你的工作的方法：

通过思考一些有趣但是属于非工作性质的活动而问自己是何种元素激励着自己参与这些活动？

邀请你的同事也这么做。（注：观察他们的乐趣属性与你自己的有何不同？）

现在使用相同的框架分析你的工作或工作中的特殊内容。

基于不同结果，我们便能够很清楚地看到并非所有人都能感受到工作的乐趣。

将你和团队所认为的有趣内容重新整合到你的工作中。

可选择的第6步，也就是你可以减少每个员工的薪酬，或者雇佣一些不要工资的志愿者帮你处理这些工作。

31.骄傲

定义：获得成就后所感到的自豪和喜悦

游戏中的例子：我拥有10个徽章。它们都是属于我的。万岁！

工作中的例子：收到来自老板的认可信息，公共荣誉，电影代表作，顾客对于我的作品的满意以及各种正面的新闻报道

混合故事例子：每个人都带有运动员心态：在获得授权的健身房中锻炼

带有运动员心态并进行锻炼能够帮助每个员工提高自己的能力。领导者能够努力提升自己的责任感并减少恐惧感，员工亦然。当双方都承担起一项绝对的责任时，他们便开始进行一次正反馈循环。尽管泰德公司（游戏邦注：全球领先的网真、高清视频会议和移动视频产品与服务提供商）的体制还不甚完善，并且也总是在生产一些半成品，但是他们却始终坚持做到自给自足。他们一直维持着稳定的速度去发展组织架构。公司的员工可以给CEO打电话，CEO也同样能给普通的员工打电话。当领导者出现“失职行为”时，他们便会采取运动员行动，而不是单纯地剥夺这些领导人的权利。

42.地位

定义：即玩家的排行或级别。玩家总是希望能够到达更高的级别或地位。

游戏中的例子：《魔兽世界》中拥有20个级别的白骑士

工作中的例子：职称透明化，根据资历安排办公室，供应快餐的小饭馆或停车特权

混合例子：智能评估代表的意义。

我们是时候重新思考智能评估对于提高创造性思维的重要性。为了能够创造出具有创意的作品，我们可以给予设计师适当的评论（也就是提供给他们支持），这也是大多数职员所渴望且很少企业能够做到的一点。

如果你看过TED上一个因为虚假学习而破坏创造性的视频，你肯定希望能够立刻重置组织中不公平的评论系统而设计更加有效的智能评估。评论系统不仅能够推动创造性，同时也能够让一些具有创意的人们汇聚在一起共同创造出更棒的作品。

游戏不仅能够带给人们乐趣与承诺，同时它也是一种非常强大的动力，能够完善生产效力并缓解变革管理。处在当今发展如此迅速的社会中，游戏设计师总是能够为企业带来一些了不起的创想。

游戏邦注：原文发表于2010年11月14日，所涉事件和数据均以当时为准。

（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

Game Design Principles and the Way We Work

By Ross Smith

November 14, 2010

In 1961, Martin Graetz, Stephen Russell, and Wayne Wiitanen wrote a PDP-1 program to create a game they called SpaceWar! – oft-cited as the first video game. In 1972, Nolan Bushnell famously created PONG to rock our world. Space Invaders showed up in 1977.  PacMan entered the lexicon in 1980, about ten years before a couple plumbers named Mario and Luigi became famous in Donkey Kong. My personal fave, Robotron 2084 arrived in 1982, just before another great one – Madden football – in 1984. Many people may remember playing DOOM  (at work!) in 1993, Tony Hawk Pro Skater in 1999, and the more than 5 billion online matches have taken place since Halo stepped up in 2001. These old school games are all great – and there are thousands more that literally changed the way we enjoy life – and collectively, they have shaped our world and clearly, made it more fun!

11 million people a day now play Farmville. More people have downloaded Bejeweled than lived in Europe when King Henry VIII was born in 1491. In October, FIFA 11 sold 2.6 million copies in its first five days of availability.

I invite you to take an hour sometime and go back in time to play a game of PONG, Breakout, or Ms. PacMan, and you’ll find that many basic game design principles are timeless – these games are still really fun – even though computer horsepower has increased dramatically and “better” options with more graphics are available.

The investment in game design has varied across these popular games, but it is a critical component of all successful games released today—and holds some powerful lessons for how we can “take the work out of work” in any context.

TechCrunch recently had a story on SCVNGR , which builds a mobile game with real-world challenges, and uses a design play deck to help create great games. The deck of cards lists nearly 50 different game mechanics that can be mixed and matched to create the foundation for different types of games. TechCrunch republished the accompanying document here.

Out of curiosity, let’s take a look at how a few of these gameplay mechanics map to “real” work life—and also look at how many of the great MiX contributions fit nicely into the same design categories…what a surprise! <grin>

1. Achievement

Definition: A virtual or physical representation of having accomplished something. These are often viewed as rewards in and of themselves.

Game Example: a badge, a level, a reward, points, really anything defined as a reward can be a reward.

Work Example: Employee-of-the-Month award, parking place, Certificate of Appreciation, Coffee Coupon

Mix Story Example: – Foldit: Citizen Scientists “thinking together” to find a cure for cancer

And to harness the gaming spirit of competitiveness, there are increasingly difficult levels of play, from beginner on up. As a protein is restructured, a score is calculated based on how well it is folded and displayed on screen. Players strive to get high scores on each puzzle, and make it to the top of overall player rankings.

3. Avoidance

Definition: The act of inducing player behavior not by giving a reward, but by not instituting a punishment. Produces consistent level of activity, timed around the schedule.

Game Example: Press a lever every 30 seconds to not get shocked.

Work Example: Produce high quality work and you don’t have to come in on the weekend. Answer the phone in 3 rings or less and customers won’t go away.

Mix Hack Example: The one key to making a giant leap upward

Our basic strategy today for leading people can be described in just five words: “Do This, Don’t Do That.” We lead our employees with rules, laws, policies, procedures, manuals and scripts. And we do this because we hope it will bring us some level of efficiency and control. This sometimes works — for a short while. But in the long term, it always backfires. Your people soon figure out there’s no reason for them to think. They shut their brains off.

6. Blissful Productivity

Definition: The idea that playing in a game makes you happier working hard, than you would be relaxing. Essentially, we’re optimized as human beings by working hard, and doing meaningful and rewarding work.

Game Example: From Jane McGonical’s Ted Talk wherein she discusses how World of Warcraft players play on average 22 hours / week (a part time job), often after a full days work. They’re willing to work hard, perhaps harder than in real life, because of their blissful productivity in the game world.

Work Example: When involved on a great project, time flies by unnoticed. “Flow”. Theory Y.

Mix Hack Example: Celebration of Innovation – Interfacing Boundaries of Play and Work

Few will deny that they have enjoyed work more when fun is found somewhere in its process. And many admit to being more productive when creative design is part of what they do. In fact, the same brain circulits stimulated during play – are also activated and strengthened during highly successful innovative initiatives. So why then, do long faces tend to trump joyous moments at work?

In spite of the compelling case for flat out fun at work,  business organizations have been slow to build cultures where play fosters innovation across diverse arenas. Innovation loses when senior managers remain locked in the past, in ways that rob the enjoyment innovators typically bring to their work. It doesn’t have to be that way.

Mix Hack Example: Giving Emotions a Chance!

In practice, an employee will get a certain role because she wants to see the world. Even though her functional skills may not be up to mark, she will put in the extra effort to learn those since she is very emotionally satisfied with the role. This would result in higher engagement leading to empowerment and eventually performance since the employee would feel obligated to return back the favor. This would also result in more innovation within the organisation as the employee may have a different functaional background leading to newer ideas and questions!

13. Cross Situational Leader-boards

Definition: This occurs when one ranking mechanism is applied across multiple (unequal and isolated) gaming scenarios. Players often perceive that these ranking scenarios are unfair as not all players were presented with an “equal” opportunity to win.

Game Example: Players are arbitrarily sent into one of three paths. The winner is determined by the top scorer overall (i.e. across the paths). Since the players can only do one path (and can’t pick), they will perceive inequity in the game scenario and get upset.

Work Example: The annual performance evaluation and fixed rewards budget

MiX Hack Example: Risk Capital as Commons – Distributive and Networked Governance

Create more freedom to innovate and greater accountability by distributing the responsibility to manage risk capital as a “commons” throughout small groups within an organization that are networked to each other. This addresses some of the key communication and risk-appetite issues in managing a complex organization.

14. Disincentives

Definition: a game element that uses a penalty (or altered situation) to induce behavioral shift

Game Example: losing health points, speeding traps

Work Example: “performance improvement” programs, docked pay or loss of bonus for slip ups

MiX Hack Example: MIX M-Prize: How to plan and run meetings that engage people’s minds, hearts and spirit to get more done, in less time, with more fun.

One elephant in the room is bad meetings. Managers spend approximately 50% of their time in meetings and they consistently report that 50% of that time is wasted. So, 12 weeks a year of zero productivity from the people who are among the most highly paid in the organization? Build a simple solution that progressive leaders and managers everywhere can use to systematically tap into talent and improve meeting results.

17. Epic Meaning

Definition: players will be highly motivated if they believe they are working to achieve something great, something awe-inspiring, something bigger than themselves.

Game Example: From Jane McGonical’s Ted Talk where she discusses Warcraft’s ongoing story line and “epic meaning” that involves each individual has motivated players to participate outside the game and create the second largest wiki in the world to help them achieve their individual quests and collectively their epic meanings.

Work Example: Company Vision Statement (if done well)

MiX Hack Example: epic.io >> supercharging performance with purpose-driven progress

Purpose is what people gather around, so we put it in the middle. Whether it’s the purpose associated with the organization’s reason for being or the purpose associated with finding better office coffee, there’s always a purpose. Comprised of a description, time frame, status, and related purposes, it is simple to setup and evolve as it needs to. Rather than becoming a container for items however, it becomes a node to which people can attach whatever moves it forward. Purpose is powerful.

MiX Hack Example: 3-D glasses: A must-have in the management innovator’s kit

To address a specific management challenge—whether it’s as big as re-conceiving of your organization’s purpose or as small as improving a specific process within your organization—first think through what in your mind should be the right space, time and method settings. What kind of 3D picture of reality do you need to see to solve for the challenge at hand? Now, code in the settings that are one order of magnitude bigger than what you think is right. Yes, it might lead to unnecessary work or it might lead to major break-through ideas and new friends

28. Modifiers

Definition: An item that when used affects other actions. Generally modifiers are earned after having completed a series of challenges or core functions.

Game Example: A X2 modifier that doubles the points on the next action you take.

Work Example: Training programs, tools and process re-engineering, internships, tuition assistance

Mix Story Example: 21 Types of Fun – What’s Yours?

Fun Profiling: A way to analyse and redesign your work:

Analyse your motivation by thinking about fun non-work activities and ask: What energises me?

Invite your colleagues to do the same. (Notice: How does their fun profile differ from yours?)

Now analyse your work, or a particular item of work, using the same framework.

Based on the difference, it becomes obvious why the work is not as fun as it could be for everyone.

Re-design your work to incorporate activities that you and your team find more energising and fun.

Optional step 6. You can now halve everyone’s pay, or bring in volunteers who will do it for nothing

31. Pride

Definition: the feeling of ownership and joy at an accomplishment

Game Example: I have ten badges. I own them. They are mine. There are many like them, but these are mine. Hooray.

Work Example: Attaboy/girl mail from the boss, public kudos, movie credits, customer satisfaction/press coverage of my work

MiX Hack Example: Business Singing

…establish choir and conduct singing sessions on regular basis. Benefits include:

Genuine friendship is developed between members;

Level of self-esteem and happiness goes up!

MiX Story Example: Player mindset for everybody: Working out at the empowerment gym

Player mindset and workouts designed to develop it are practical ways to build self-empowerment. Leaders can do a lot to increase trust and reduce fear but so can the employees. When both sides take on unconditional responsibility, they start a positive feedback loop. Although TANDBERG’s organization is far from perfect and is always a work-in-progress, they have to a large extent managed to keep their cake, and eat it, too. They kept a fairly flat organizational structure without losing speed. People do call up the CEO, and the other way round. And when leaders “misbehave,” it’s perceived as a call for some Player action, rather than the call to join the Disengaged and the Disempowered.

42. Status

Definition: The rank or level of a player. Players are often motivated by trying to reach a higher level or status.

Game Example: white paladin level 20 in World of Warcraft.

Work Example: Transparent job titles, corner offices based on seniority, lunch room or parking privileges

MiX Hack Example: What Marks an Intelligent Assessment

It’s time to step back and radically rethink the power of intelligent evaluations to jumpstart high-performance minds for an innovative era. To generate novel inventions, by igniting support through reviews for designers, is to set the stage for new business opportunities that most workers crave and yet few organizations achieve.

If you’ve seen this TED video, on how creativity gets clobbered in pretense of learning– you’re likely  ready to reconfigure unfair reviews into more intelligent evaluation designs. Into reviews that promote innovation and pull ingenious people together for the greater good of all!

MiX Hack Example: Managers, you need to become great Game Designers !

Games are finally recognized as a very powerful dynamic to improve productivity and ease change management while keeping people happy and committed. In a society with fast pace of change, game designers have great solutions for enterprises.(source:managementexchange)