A methodology for assessing the effectiveness of serious games and for inferring player learning outcomes

Ángel Serrano-Laguna, Borja Manero, Manuel Freire, Baltasar Fernández-Manjón
2017 Multimedia tools and applications  
Although serious games are proven educational tools in many educational domains, they lack reliable, automated and repeatable methodologies to measure their effectiveness: what do players know after playing a serious game? Did they learn with it? Literature research shows that the vast majority of serious games are assessed through questionnaires, which strikes a stark contrast with current trends in the video game industry. Commercial videogames have been learning from their players through
more » ... e Analytics for years, using non-disruptive game tracking. In this paper, we propose a methodology to assess serious games effectiveness using non-disruptive in-game tracking. The methodology proposes a design pattern that structures the delivery of educational goals within the game. This structure also allows inferring learning outcomes for each individual player, which, when aggregated, would determine the effectiveness of the serious game. We have tested this methodology with a serious game that was played by 320 students. The proposed methodology allowed us to infer players' learning outcomes and assess game effectiveness and to spot issues in the game design.
doi:10.1007/s11042-017-4467-6 fatcat:cv6j2yroofa4lnrh5ngmxfv2tq