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Totara Recipe: How to introduce learning games into your strategy

Gamification has become one of e-learning’s hottest buzzwords, but getting your head in the game can seem like a daunting and expensive prospect for many organisations.

Our recipe will help ensure you’re fully prepared to embrace this exciting element of learning technologies for truly game-changing learning.

Ingredients
  • An LMS or platform on which to host the game
  • Game design software
  • A game designer
  • A graphics expert
  • An open-minded audience
Preparatio
  • Play other games designed with similar objectives to yours in mind to get a feel for what works and what doesn’t as a real player
  • Decide on a realistic approach based on your budget and timeframes. The more complex the game, the more expensive it will be to build
  • Work out how you can communicate your learning message effectively using game mechanics. Will it be a simulation? A puzzle game? An open-world exploration game?
Method
  • Start small – get the basic game mechanics right and test with a pilot group before spending your entire budget
  • Build failure into the game. Failure provides effective learning opportunities
  • Ensure the theme is engaging and cohesive with the objective of the game
  • Introduce shareable elements to encourage competition, such as leaderboards, points, badges and rewards
  • Allow the game to collect data on performance to find out how people are performing and interacting with it
Serve and enjoy!
  • If the game is a success, consider adding more levels or challenges to enrich the learning experience
  • Secure testimonials from the most engaged players to help promote the game

Download the gamification recipe

Enjoyed this recipe? Feel free to share it on social media using #TotaraRecipe to help any colleagues or connections looking to get started with gamification.

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Prepare your people for tomorrow, today.