This post is making the rounds. I’m not sure how good it is — it’s less of an argument than a heartfelt and anguished cry from someone horrified by the commodification of something they love. I’m sympathetic. And the author is right, certainly, that many firms will half-heartedly pursue gamification projects, produce lackluster results, and fail, giving the trend a bad name.
But I’m not sure that “gamification is bullshit”, as Bogost maintains. After spending an hour with someone who works for Zynga, I’m convinced it’s not that at all. Here’s what it is: price discrimination plus a radical version of behaviorial economics. It’s the further weaponization of marketing’s insights into consumer behavior. It isn’t just something dreamed up by morons from the marketing department–it’s actually much more frightening than that.
Agreed.
[...] it’s not crazy to think that money in politics is a problemmore about gamificationI’ve noted before that it’s a bit horrifying. If you haven’t read this essay about it, you should. The [...]