Just watched Jane McGonigal's fascinating TEDTalk on gaming and the links that can be established between solving big problems in virtual worlds and solving big problems in the real world. She cites four "super powers" gamers develop from gameplay, all of which are valuable as we in the digital / marketing / strategy space think about the consumers and end users we serve:
- Urgent optimism. McGonigal defines this as the "desire to act immediately to tackle an obstacle combined with the belief that we have a reasonable hope of success."
- Social fabric. Gamers weave a tight social fabric. Studies show that we like people better after we've played a game with them. Playing a game with someone requires a lot of trust to play by the same rules, value the same goal, stay with the game until it's over, etc.
- Blissful productivity. When we're playing a game we're happier working hard than sitting around. Gamers are willing to work hard if they're given the right work.
- Epic meaning. Gamers love to be attached to awe-inspiring mission.
These "super powers" provide us with another set of attributes by which we can describe and understand the motivations people. They uncover amazing opportunities to layer gaming - not necessarily games - into marketing strategies and initiatives. Gaming isn't a fad, and it's not just about entertainment. Replicating aspects of what makes games inherently attractive can create new sources of significant stickiness and value.
