Cristiana BARANDONI
(Aegean Lab, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy)
Keywords: games, gamification, education, museum
Abstract:
In recent years, the relationship between games and virtual or real museums is strongly debated. According to the latest digital communication experiences, in good interactive exhibits, it seems that game is gradually playing a substantial role in museum practices, especially focusing on engagement of an ever-wider public. Gamification, the process of applying game principles to non-game activities, has increasingly gained position in numerous efforts to integrate an interactive, game-based dimension into the museum experience, opposing to standardized strategies to introduce collections to public.
But contrary to what one can think of, games are not just referring to specific targets (i.e. children or adolescents): in museums, as well as high-tech strategies, it has become a mass communication tool.
This report purposes to review some of the latest experiences (Meanderthal by Smithsonian, LaunchBall by Museum of Science in Boston, Eduweb’s augmented reality app MoonWalking, Father and Son by Museo Archeologico Nazionale of Naples, Race against Time by Tate Gallery), from the technical and analytical point of view, analyzing the critical impact on the public, observing if quantifiable outcomes are realistic. Finally this report hints on our board game on Minoan Crete, easy-playable, by everyone, young and old, individuals and schools, whose aim is to both teach and entertain.
Relevance conference / Relevance session:
To analyze the approach of games in museum practices
Innovation:
Comparison between digital games and board games for educational purposes.
We will discuss in general about games in museum and specifically onto three of them.