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Posted: Sun Jan 19, 2025 6:39 am
The fun of playing together is undisputed. Successful games are often social. It is not without reason that 'social connection' is one of the four key drivers for players according to Jane McGonigal. Now that technology can be used increasingly smarter, we can move (back) to playing classic games: during the Adobe User Group meeting on Social Gaming I spoke about stimulating interaction IRL with the help of digital games .
Digital media causes isolation in families
In this article I will discuss the needs of families with regard to social interaction and how you, as a concept developer or game designer, can respond to these.
By now, only 40% of children do not have access to a (personal) tablet. Of the children in groups 7 and 8, 41% have their own smartphone and in most households there are multiple desktop computers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, game consoles and TVs available (source: Qrius ). And that is increasing rapidly: every six months, 1 million tablets are added in the Netherlands.
The image that is painted in communication is often that of families who use all modern possibilities in great harmony. However, there is something to be said against that. IKEA already showed that in its Playreport in 2010:
45% of parents do not have time to play with children
26% of parents are too stressed to play with their children
many parents have forgotten how to play, but 73% of children prefer playing with parents rather than watching TV
This research was conducted in many countries, the situation in the Netherlands is (fortunately) more positive than average.
The downside of increasing availability: parents and children experience stress, feel that they have too little contact with each other and indicate that they are too isolated when they are together; “Dad keeps looking at his mobile phone at the table.” How do you deal with that?
AUG-2 families
Solution 1: Refrain from media use
One way to deal with this is to refrain from or limit media use. A week without Facebook, a maximum of 30 minutes of screen time per day, we know the stories. Apart from the substantive vision of this approach, it is a problem that this approach may not be so future-proof.
Solution 2: Better media usage
Howard Rheingold advocates mindful media use in his new book Net Smart . He says that we are at the point where we can no longer defend ourselves against all media and that we don't have to. It's there and it's good.
“Mindful use of digital media means thinking about what we are doing uganda mobile phone number list cultivating an ongoing inner inquiry into how we want to spend our time.”
We are becoming better media users and are getting an increasingly better offer, because we ask for it. Using digital media in a real social environment fits in well with that thinking. In the game publishing industry, there is a lot of research into how such a connection between virtual and real could exist. For example, by offering a major game title digitally as the ultimate pocket version.
Monopoly
The Monopoly game for Android in the video below is richly executed, but still seems to be missing something in the game; a fully sealed game, completely according to the rules, does not allow cheating. In addition, passing the tablet around the table leads to isolated play. There may not be enough room for social play at the table (cheating, challenging the rules, jointly following and discussing the game progress).
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Appcessories
Another way is to literally pull a game out of the tablet in the form of accessories for the control. That leads to more visible social play, but – says Michiel Rademakers of game maker Jumbo – many appcessories often offer too little added value. The first generation of appcessories often had too low a value for money. Producers mainly focused on a high gadget content – a sales incentive – and thought too little about enriching play.
Digital media causes isolation in families
In this article I will discuss the needs of families with regard to social interaction and how you, as a concept developer or game designer, can respond to these.
By now, only 40% of children do not have access to a (personal) tablet. Of the children in groups 7 and 8, 41% have their own smartphone and in most households there are multiple desktop computers, laptops, tablets, smartphones, game consoles and TVs available (source: Qrius ). And that is increasing rapidly: every six months, 1 million tablets are added in the Netherlands.
The image that is painted in communication is often that of families who use all modern possibilities in great harmony. However, there is something to be said against that. IKEA already showed that in its Playreport in 2010:
45% of parents do not have time to play with children
26% of parents are too stressed to play with their children
many parents have forgotten how to play, but 73% of children prefer playing with parents rather than watching TV
This research was conducted in many countries, the situation in the Netherlands is (fortunately) more positive than average.
The downside of increasing availability: parents and children experience stress, feel that they have too little contact with each other and indicate that they are too isolated when they are together; “Dad keeps looking at his mobile phone at the table.” How do you deal with that?
AUG-2 families
Solution 1: Refrain from media use
One way to deal with this is to refrain from or limit media use. A week without Facebook, a maximum of 30 minutes of screen time per day, we know the stories. Apart from the substantive vision of this approach, it is a problem that this approach may not be so future-proof.
Solution 2: Better media usage
Howard Rheingold advocates mindful media use in his new book Net Smart . He says that we are at the point where we can no longer defend ourselves against all media and that we don't have to. It's there and it's good.
“Mindful use of digital media means thinking about what we are doing uganda mobile phone number list cultivating an ongoing inner inquiry into how we want to spend our time.”
We are becoming better media users and are getting an increasingly better offer, because we ask for it. Using digital media in a real social environment fits in well with that thinking. In the game publishing industry, there is a lot of research into how such a connection between virtual and real could exist. For example, by offering a major game title digitally as the ultimate pocket version.
Monopoly
The Monopoly game for Android in the video below is richly executed, but still seems to be missing something in the game; a fully sealed game, completely according to the rules, does not allow cheating. In addition, passing the tablet around the table leads to isolated play. There may not be enough room for social play at the table (cheating, challenging the rules, jointly following and discussing the game progress).
Accept cookies
Appcessories
Another way is to literally pull a game out of the tablet in the form of accessories for the control. That leads to more visible social play, but – says Michiel Rademakers of game maker Jumbo – many appcessories often offer too little added value. The first generation of appcessories often had too low a value for money. Producers mainly focused on a high gadget content – a sales incentive – and thought too little about enriching play.