Reality is broken
Why games make us better and how they can change the world
By Jane McGonigal
An inspirational book, lets start there, Mrs McGonigal has most definitely written an inspirational book here.
It is an easy read; keeping it light and easy to follow while still packing it with enough chewy science to keep me satisfied. Suitable for the average crossword-puzzler and the established game researcher.
The positive twists and turns make me want to throw my hands in the air in fiero shouting “Yes, exactly!”
A popular scientific piece of writing with a very well thought out information structure and the 14 Reality Fixes that gaming can provide. Explaining why reality does not function all too well at times and how a gaming structure might plug the hole reality left for us to stick our foot in. She clearly explains the psychological mechanisms involved and hands us the implications, the implementation and -thank you very much- the proof.
The only drawback is that it is all on the positive side. Yes, gaming has effects. Yes, gaming has positive effects. Gaming has an immense potential for learning and affecting behavioural change. Oh yes indeed. But if it can do good, it can also do bad and this is only briefly addressed in this book. Discussing any adverse effects is not the scope of the book or the intention of the writer, which is fine, but I find the need to keep this in the back of my mind while reading this prose of gaming.
I heartily recommend this book to anyone interested in what gaming does to us and what it could mean to the world at large, as well as those interested in (Alternate Reality) Gaming.
Upon closing the covers one feels ready to change the world with good game :-)