#Democracy 3 difficulty how to#
#Democracy 3 difficulty drivers#

So while the idea of gamifying democracy may seem to trivialize the deep problems we face today or be another instance of techno-solutionism, that’s not my intention.

#Democracy 3 difficulty how to#

While all of this effort is at least partly in pursuit of profit, there are clear lessons to be drawn about how to motivate users to engage with systems that could be applied for the greater good.įully participating in democracy today - not just voting, but getting involved in local planning and budgeting processes, or building and sharing knowledge - involves navigating increasingly complex systems that desperately need to be made more welcoming and accessible. They recognize and reward players for every bit of progress they make, and when players are ready to venture into multiplayer activities, they encourage good sportsmanship. And they make the learning process itself fun, often eschewing tedious tutorials in favor of a simplified version of the game itself. It means they’re incredibly patient in giving beginners all the time and assistance they need to learn the skills required to learn the game and have fun. Wildly popular - and very different - games like Mario Kart, Minecraft and Zelda all have one thing in common: they’re exquisitely designed to be enjoyed by as broad an audience as possible. The same game design ideas that have made video games the 21 st century’s dominant form of entertainment - adaptive difficulty, responsive interfaces, progress indicators and multiplayer systems that encourage co-operative behaviour - can be harnessed in the service of democracies and civil society. Crucially, I believe any gamification intended for schools and colleges must be researched and debated openly before deployment.īut I also believe gamification can strengthen democracies, by designing democratic participation to be accessible and to build consensus. Regulators must also ensure that gamified finance apps and video games don’t manipulate users into losing more money than they can afford. In my new book, “ You’ve Been Played,” I argue that governments must regulate gamification so that it respects workers’ privacy and dignity.

But the gamification we’re most likely to encounter in our lives is something we have no control over - in our increasingly surveilled and gamified workplaces, for instance, or through the creeping advance of manipulative gamification in financial, insurance, travel and health services. Many choose to gamify parts of their lives to make them a little more fun, like learning a new language with Duolingo or going for a run with my own Zombies, Run! app.

#Democracy 3 difficulty drivers#

And it’s in our jobs, turning the work of Uber drivers and call center staff into quests and missions, where success comes with an achievement and $50 bonus, and failure - well, you can imagine. It’s in our classrooms, where teachers use apps to reward and punish children with points. It’s in our smartwatches, cajoling us to walk an extra thousand steps for a digital trophy. Gamification - the use of ideas from game design for purposes beyond entertainment - is everywhere. His latest book is “You’ve Been Played” (Basic Books, September 2022). Adrian Hon is an author and the CEO and founder of games developer Six to Start.