Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
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Background
Interactive experiences within a game environment allow people to express their
creativity and intentions [15]. Research on creativity has resulted in multiple
definitions, perspectives and models. For example, creativity has been defined to
consist of at least four components: (1) the creative process, (2) the creative product,
(3) the creative person, and (4) the creative situation [3]. It has also been grouped
using four definitions: product, person, press (the “press” of the environment), and
process [13]. Our research concentrates on the creative process and, more specifically,
the thinking processes employed during creative activity. The creative process is the
result of sustained and complex mental effort over time [13] and consists of a step-by-
step sequence of mental activities.
To identify the potential of games to engage players in creative processes, criteria
related to activity undertaken need to be clearly understood. While we understand that
games have great potential to support creative processes [11], it is not clear how we
go about designing for creative activity. We know that creative ideas result from the
novel combination of ideas [14], that creativity involves a process of convergent and
divergent thinking [2], and that critical thinking plays an important role [5]. To
develop interactive experiences that incorporate these valuable, educative processes,
we need a clearer understanding of how different game elements may be combined to
produce creative potential.
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A Creative Potential Game Design Model
The creative potential game design model is based on two distinct studies. The first
study was designed to measure the creative processes that occur during gameplay [6].
The conceptual method that was employed to assess creativity examined the extent to
which factors that have been identified as playing an important role in creative
processes - task motivation, domain-relevant skills and creativity-relevant skills - are
present within gaming experiences. A behavioral and verbal protocol method that has
been used previously to measure creativity in structure building activities, collage
making and poem writing [12] was employed during this research. The study involved
participants being observed while playing the three selected puzzle games: Portal 2,
Braid and I-Fluid (Portal 2 is played from a first-person perspective and involves
solving puzzles via the placement of portals within the environment; Braid is a
platform style game that involves solving puzzles by manipulating time; and I-Fluid is
a game where the player controls a drop of water and attempts to solve physics based
puzzles). They played each game for 15 minutes. To examine the creative process,
participants were video recorded while playing the games and a video coding scheme
was used to capture the type and frequency of observable behaviors and participant
verbalizations.
The second study [7,8] examined specific elements of the three games used in
study 1 to determine which of these elements are important in fostering creativity. A
heuristic checklist forms the basis of this study and experts used the items in this
