SERIOUS GAME DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY WITH SYSTEM AND HUMAN ORIENTED APPROACH A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY LEVENT BERKE ÇAPLI IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY STUDIES MARCH 2019 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof. Dr. Tülin Gençöz Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Teoman Pamukçu Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Serhat Çakır Supervisor Examining Committee Members Assist. Prof. Dr. Altan Özkil (Atılım Uni., AVM) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Serhat Çakır (METU, PHYS) Assist. Prof. Dr. Ziya Karakaya (Atılım Uni., CMPE) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name: Levent Berke Çaplı Signature: iii [Type a quote from ABSTRACT SERIOUS GAME DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY WITH SYSTEM AND HUMAN ORIENTED APPROACH Çaplı, Levent Berke Master of Science, Department of Science and Technology Policy Studies Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Serhat Çakır March 2019, 123 pages Serious games are on the rise as a new and motivating education and training method. This rise is being supported by serious games’ ability to address individuals of all ages from many sectors. Although the game and education industries have established standards based on lessons learned, this is lacking for serious games. Considering the hybrid nature, it can be seen that there are many possible approaches for designing and developing serious games. It is possible to take elements form both simulation as well as game development approach. When available resources on development are examined, an invisible divide can be observed between design approaches. While one side of this division follows a functional system approach, the other side adopts a human motivational oriented approach. This study is designed around the research question if these two approaches can be combined. In order to answer this question, best practices and expert opinions are evaluated, similarities and differences between them are analysed by presenting different approaches. Aim of this thesis is to introduce a new serious game development methodology that covers game, system and people-oriented approaches. In order to understand the real life application of this methodology case studies were used for verification and validation. In addition, this study aims to provide a guide for serious game developers, which includes definitions, best practices, common problems and development processes. This study will be a significant endeavour to provide critical iv [Type a quote from guidance for serious game developers and provide methods of improvements to a growing sector’s development process. Keywords: Serious Game Design, Development Methodology, Human Oriented Design, System Design Approach. v [Type a quote from ÖZ SİSTEM YAKLAŞIMLI VE İNSAN ODAKLI CİDDİ OYUN GELİŞTİRME METODOLOJİSİ Çaplı, Levent Berke Yüksek Lisans, Bilim ve Teknoloji Politikası Çalışmaları Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi: Doç. Dr. Serhat Çakır Mart 2019, 123 sayfa Bir yandan oyun tasarım yaklaşımı izlerken diğer yandan simülasyon yaklaşımı izlemek mümkündür. Ancak salt ciddi oyun yaklaşımı hala yabancı bir kavramdır. Ciddi oyun geliştirme üzerine mevcut kaynaklar incelendiğinde, tasarım yaklaşımları arasında “görünmeyen bir bölünme” ile karşılaşılmaktadır. Bu bölünmenin bir tarafı fonksiyonel sistem yaklaşımı izlerken diğer tarafı insan motivasyonları odaklı bir yaklaşım benimsemektedir. Bu çalışma kapsamında en iyi uygulamalar ve uzman görüşleri değerlendirilmekte, mevcut farklı yaklaşımlar ortaya konarak, aralarındaki benzerlikler ve farklılıklar analiz edilmektedir. Bu tez, oyun tasarımı, sistem ve insan odaklı yaklaşımları kapsayan yeni bir ciddi oyun geliştirme metodolojisi ortaya koymaktadır. Bu tezin amacı, oyun tasarımını, sistem ve insan odaklı yaklaşımları kapsayan yeni bir ciddi oyun geliştirme metodolojisi sunmaktır. Metodolojinin gerçek hayattaki uygulamamasının daha iyi anlaşılması için vaka çalışmaları ile geliştirilen metodolojinin doğrulama ve geçerlemesi yapılmıştır. Bu çalışma, ciddi oyun geliştiricileri için ciddi oyun tanımlarını, en iyi uygulamaları, ortak geliştirme sorunlarını ve geliştirme süreçlerini içeren bir rehber sunmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu çalışma, ciddi oyun geliştiricileri için kritik rehberlik sağlamak ve büyümekte olan bir sektörün gelişim sürecine iyileştirme yöntemleri sağlamak için önemli bir çaba olacaktır. vi [Type a quote from Anahtar Kelimeler: Ciddi Oyunlar, Geliştirme Metodolojisi, İnsan ve Sistem Odaklı Geliştirme vii [Type a quote from ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express his deepest gratitude to his supervisor Assoc. Prof. Dr. Serhat Çakır for his support throughout the writing this thesis. Also the author extents his gratefulness to Asst. Prof. Dr. Altan Özkil, without his guidance, support and wisdom this thesis would have been not possible. His encouragements, advice and insights throughout the research has kept the author motivated and focused on the target. Because of his contributions he has the eternal graduate of the researcher. viii [Type a quote from TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM .............................................................................................................iii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................iv ÖZ ................................................................................................................................vi DEDICATION .............................................................................................................vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS .........................................................................................viii TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................ix LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................xiii LIST OF FIGURES ...................................................................................................xiv LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS .....................................................................................xv CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................1 2. LITERATURE REVIEW ...................................................................................4 2.1 Game Design Process ..................................................................................4 2.1.1 The Design Framework .....................................................................5 2.1.2 Gameflow ...........................................................................................6 2.1.3 User Control Interface ........................................................................7 2.1.4 Story ...................................................................................................8 2.1.5 Game Characters ................................................................................8 2.2 Game Development Process .......................................................................9 2.3 Serious Games Design ..............................................................................10 2.3.1 Serious Games Design Document ...................................................11 2.4 Serious Game Development Process ........................................................12 2.4.1 Story in Serious Games ....................................................................12 2.5 Digital Game Development Process .........................................................15 2.5.1 Use of Game Engines .......................................................................16 2.5.2 Development with Modification ......................................................16 3. SERIOUS GAMES ...........................................................................................18 3.1 History of Serious Games ...................................................................18 3.2 Definition of Serious Games ...............................................................19 ix [Type a quote from 3.3 Serious Game Components .......................................................................20 3.3.1 Game Module ...................................................................................20 3.3.1.1 Game Technologies .................................................................21 3.3.1.2 Game Mechanics .....................................................................21 3.3.1.3 Graphic Interface .....................................................................23 3.3.2 Training Module ..............................................................................23 3.3.3 Instructor Module .............................................................................26 3.3.4 After Action Review ........................................................................26 3.4 Classification of Serious Games ...............................................................27