Gamification, serious games and game-based learning are very similar. All three are very effective to motivate players. The difference between gamification and game-based learning is that in gamification you apply (some) game elements in an existing (non-gaming) context and in game-based learning you use existing games or specially developed serious games to learn. The difference between game-based learning and a serious game is that game-based learning is more a method, the way of learning, and a serious game is a product in which game-based learning is possible. Let’s take a closer look at gamification, game-based learning and serious games.

What is gamification?

Gamification is not about a game, but about the use of game elements in a non-gaming context. It is a method in which one or more game elements are processed in a process to better transfer knowledge. A similar definition of gamification is a set of activities and processes to solve problems by applying the properties of games. By applying game elements users become more involved, are more productive and have more fun. A good example of gamification is Kahoot, a tool that allows you to compose a quiz. Users can then take part in the quiz via their phone or laptop and fill in their answers live. After each question there is an intermediate mode in which you can see how well you are doing compared to other players. This leaderboard, an example of a game element, motivates players to do their best.

Pros of gamification

• Simple implementation and low development costs.
• Can be applied as an extra layer on an existing product or intervention.
• Great for making repetitive or boring actions more fun.
• Effective to stimulate competition within a company and motivate employees.

Cons of gamification

• Less effective in the long run because the virtual rewards do not provide long-term satisfaction.
• Only appeals to a limited target group, mainly people who are performance oriented.
• Can not be used for all types of problems. With only gamification, you do not learn new skills.
• Can only be used as an extra layer for an existing intervention.

What is game-based learning?

Game-based learning is the use of existing games or specially developed serious games to learn something or to achieve a specific learning outcome. The difference between game-based learning and a serious game is that game-based learning is a learning methodology, and a serious game is a product in which game-based learning is possible.

Pros of game-based learning

• Appeals to the target group, because it better suits their interests.
• Game-based learning provides an environment in which users can experiment and receive immediate feedback on their actions.
• This is a proven effective way of learning.
• In this environment new skills are trained and knowledge is transferred
• Due to the high immersion and captivating game environment, game-based learning keeps users’ attention for a long time.

Cons of game-based learning

• The use of game-based learning depends on supply. There is not (yet) a game for every possible problem.
• A companion, instructor or teacher is needed to properly guide game-based learning.
• Think about defining the learning goals, explaining and assessing.
• This facilitator, instructor or teacher must have extensive knowledge of the game being used.

What are serious games?

Serious games have a primary goal to transfer knowledge, teaching skills or the stimulation of behavioural change. Entertainment is not the main objective of serious games. Serious games are often used by companies to achieve complex goals. In education, the healthcare sector, within governments and for scientific purposes, serious games are often used. A good serious game is indistinguishable from a game that focuses purely on entertainment. By using an attractive virtual world, exciting characters, rewards and challenges, games become attractive to play. A serious game gets its power from the storyline. Every game has a storyline, but in serious games a message is incorporated in it, depending on the learning objective of the game. Combined with the challenges and rewards, the game can be set up in such a way that the users (sometimes unconsciously) learn a new behaviour or take on new knowledge. Learning in a fun way. All over the world we see beautiful results in which serious gaming played a leading role. Discover five examples of successful serious games.

Pros of a serious game

• Is widely applicable for almost any type of problem or objective because it can be fully customized.
• Can be tailored to any possible target group due to the wide range of available game genres.
• Is effective for a long time because the player is intrinsically motivated to continue playing the game. Because of this it can be used for behavioural change.
• Has a high degree of immersion which makes the learning effect greater than other interventions.
• It is a stand-alone intervention.

Cons of a serious game

• The development of a serious game is complex, takes a lot of time and is therefore often more expensive.
• Requires specific domain-knowledge to develop.
• The launch and support of a Serious Game needs planning and support

Serious games, gamification and game-based learning: a conclusion

Gamification, serious games and game-based learning are very similar. The difference is that gamification applies a few game elements in an existing context. Game-based learning is a training that consists entirely of game elements. However, both gamification and game-based learning are very effective in motivating players and are accessible in terms of implementation and cost. Gamification is easy to implement and therefore has low costs. It is suitable for making repetitive or boring actions more fun and can stimulate competition within a company. Gamification is less effective in the long run and is not always the right solution. Game-based learning fits well with the interests of the target group and is therefore often very appealing. Users can experiment in this environment and because of the captivating game environment game-based learning keeps the user’s attention for a long time. However, the use of game-based learning depends on the availability on the market and a facilitator/instructor (with sufficient knowledge) is needed to properly supervise it. A serious game is broadly applicable because it can be fully customized. Because serious games motivate the players intrinsically, they can also be used for behavioural change. However, the development of a serious game is more complex and therefore often more expensive than, for example, gamification.

YIMBY (Yes In My Back Yard) is an innovative and engaging tool that empowers citizens to shape their neighborhoods and public spaces. This interactive game allows users to assess, adapt, and create designs that are not only community-focused but also resilient to challenges like heat stress, drought, and flooding. The goal is simple: design a climate-resistant, vibrant public space with active input from those who will use it most.

Why YIMBY?

YIMBY bridges the gap between community members and organizations, enabling faster, more collaborative development of public spaces. By incorporating user-driven design and clear guidelines provided by local organizations, YIMBY helps create spaces that improve quality of life while reducing long-term social and environmental costs.

How Does It Work?

YIMBY invites citizens to participate in every step of the design process. Users can:

• Explore: View, rate, and comment on designs created by neighbors and organizations.
• Design: Create their ideal public space using a variety of elements like trees, paths, greenery, or even parking spaces.
• Test: Run simulations to see if the design can withstand extreme weather conditions, ensuring resilience to heatwaves, droughts, and heavy rainfall.

With its 3D interface, YIMBY brings designs to life, allowing users to view their creations from every angle and refine them for maximum impact.

Making a Difference Together

Whether it’s a park, playground, or a lively street, YIMBY turns community aspirations into actionable designs. And the best part? Top-rated designs could become a reality, transforming neighborhoods into more livable and sustainable spaces.

Take part in shaping your environment. With YIMBY, the future of public spaces is in your hands!

One innovative way to enhance neighborhood resilience to extreme weather is by empowering residents to transform their gardens into climate-proof spaces through a fun and interactive competition.

The Concept: The Garden Battle
In the Garden Battle, residents participate in a digital twin city—an online platform where the entire city, including streets and homes, is represented as a virtual model. Participants can locate their own street and home, claim their garden, and get started on redesigning it to be as climate-proof as possible.

The competition allows residents to compete individually and as a community. Neighbors vie for the best garden design, while neighborhoods compete to see who can create the most climate-resilient environment. Whether it’s the city center or the suburban districts, the challenge brings communities together to build a greener, more resilient future.

The Goal
The primary objective is to encourage residents to collectively reimagine and redesign their outdoor spaces in ways that improve climate resilience—not just virtually, but in their real environments as well.

How the Game Works
Garden Battle is designed for easy participation, with short, engaging sessions played either indoors or outdoors. Players can experiment with their virtual gardens, exploring aesthetic ideas while considering climate resilience. The game presents challenges like extreme rainfall, prolonged drought, and intense heat, allowing players to test their designs under simulated conditions.

Players gain valuable insights into how their design choices affect their garden’s ability to withstand these conditions. The game even links directly to real-world solutions—participants can view and purchase items to implement their designs in their own gardens. Through integration with ARCgis, the game highlights the climate resilience of neighborhoods, motivating players to turn their digital designs into reality.

Beyond Private Gardens
The game also allows participants to redesign public spaces in their neighborhoods. These designs can be shared with others and reviewed by local authorities, enabling broader community impact.

How It’s Distributed
The game is accessible on laptops, desktops, or tablets, making it easy for residents to participate. By combining individual competition with collaborative neighborhood goals, the Garden Battle encourages a shared sense of responsibility for creating sustainable and climate-resilient environments.

The Impact
The Garden Battle inspires residents to take proactive steps toward making their outdoor spaces better equipped to handle extreme weather events. It fosters awareness, creativity, and action, ultimately contributing to greener, more pleasant neighborhoods that are resilient to the challenges of climate change.

This approach not only educates residents but also enables them to make meaningful changes in their environments—proof that climate resilience begins right at home.

Saving robots using the Nintendo Wii nunchuks as laparoscopic controllers might not seem like the obvious way to train laparoscopic skills, but it works.

Henk ten Cate Hoedemaker, now retired surgeon in gastroenterology and gastrointestinal surgery, ran a fantastic laparoscopic skills training centre at Universitair Medisch Centrum Groningen (UMCG) full of the very best surgical simulators. However, his trainees were anywhere but in the training centre. He did notice they were playing a lot of games on their smartphones. Henk realised the games had something different to simulators that motivated trainees to play and build real game skills. The mobile game Angry Birds was a hit at the time, and he could see game-skill growth.
Around the same time, evidence emerged computer gameplay was beneficial in acquiring skills needed for minimally invasive surgery (MIS) – game play in 2D representations of 3D environments benefitted MIS skills.  Henk’s passion is training surgeons and he hypothesises that a game made specifically to train laparoscopic skills might be better at skills transfer than a random game and might be more intrinsically motivating than a simulator. This core idea kicked off the development of our game Underground.

The story of Underground.

Underground is a challenging and seriously fun game we created especially for the Nintendo Wii U. At the same time, it’s a validated training tool for laparoscopic motor skills. This award-winning game features a heartwarming storyline about a little girl named Sari and Sw4nk, her butler robot friend.

When Sw4nk does an unsatisfying job, Sari’s father sends him away to work in the mines. Sari goes against her father’s will and tries to break him out. While traveling through the underground caverns, Sari and the robots get themselves into a world of trouble and it’s up to you to help them out of their predicament.

During their quest for safety, you’re presented with challenging situations in four unique worlds; each with their own threats and opportunities. Discover all the different building blocks and build your way up to the surface in this charming game about friendship, robots and a little girl who loves to dance.

The laparoscopic controllers.

The game comes with it’s very own laparoscopic controllers. These laparoscopic controllers house a Wii Remote and a Wii Nunchuk. Each handset has a lance that is anchored to the playing field through a hinge joint. The playing field registers motion and rotation from each of the handsets using infrared light. This enables the player to control the game using motions identical to those performed during laparoscopic surgery. The Underground hardware has been scientifically validated through its stages of development. Not only does it possess solid face validity, but it also posesses a very strong construct and concurrent validity. A basic level of the game was able to distinguish various levels of laparoscopic expertise and showed a high and significant correlation (r = 0.812, P < 0.001) to the FLS Peg Transfer task, a gold standard for measuring a wide array of laparoscopic skills.

Underground is one of a kind. It’s a real video game, with an interesting narrative and goals to achieve, that is controlled entirely using controllers that behave like real laparoscopic instruments. It builds real laparoscopic skills, from interpretation of 3D space from 2D cues to hand-eye coordination and cognitive decision making, with a lot of situational awareness thrown in. The game is designed to be fun, to encourage lots of repetition and deliberate practice; the kind of things needed for skills acquisition.

Underground was throughly evaluated by Henk’s team and others and multiple papers have been published on its effectiveness. You can download a digital thesis on the validity and effects of the game here.

Help nurses improve their capacity to identify subtle signs of patients’ deterioration and communicate their concerns appropriately. This leads to an increased number of rapid response team calls, a decreased number of airway emergency calls, and a decrease in inpatients’ cardiac arrests.

Distress!

In Distress! you are a nurse on a daily routine to check patients. However, one of your patients seems restless. When you take a closer look, you know that something is wrong. It’s up to you to make the right decisions in this scenario based on real life events.

Realistic scenario

Distress! is developed together with the nursing staff and doctors of a real hospital. The patient conditions, equipment and actions are all based on real situations. The content is developed by medical professionals, for medical professionals.

Recognize the signs

Distress! is developed to train early identification of acute symptoms. Watch the patient closely to be able to make the right assessment and escalate when needed.

Make the right decisions

Your choice matters. Will you waste time by doing nothing? Or make the right decision to stabilize the patient? There are several ways to get to the right outcome, but there are a lot more that make the situation worse.

Evaluate your decisions

Look back and evaluate the choices you made. See where you can improve and try again to set the best time.