In part two of Jane McGonigal's book Reality is Broken, we start to see video games where the people play the game in real life and then move onto the computer to log what they have done. These are called Alternate Reality Games as we learn on page 112. The game that she mentions in The Benefits of Alternate Realities is called Chore Wars. In this game people compete in their homes to be the first to clean. In the game you get points for doing more work and being able to do it creatively, like while others are asleep. This to me was actually not a surprise as a game but more that it existed elsewhere. As a kid every summer I would earn points for doing things other then watching TV or playing video games. And doing things such as cleaning were the highest point getters. Then after I gained enough points I could cash in on a great prize. Doing dirty work is never fun, but if you make it a game it can become a really easy and painless thing to do.
The next section of Part 2 in the book is called Leveling Up in Life. She talks about how she wishes that like in games when you do something hard you get to level up. Lately I've been working out. A lot! And at first it can be really hard to do because you don't seem to see any results. But then you start to see the muscle definition that you wanted to see. And that to me feels like leveling up. In addition to that as a tap dancer there are really tough dance trick moves. When you first start to dance it can be really tough because you feel like everyone is far ahead of you. Then suddenly you move forward. And you start to level up. If more people could see that they're leveling up then people would perhaps feel better about the hard tasks that we have to do.
The third part of Part 2 is called Fun With Strangers. In this part Jane talks about games where the whole world is playing an ARG and you can basically meet new people. She talks about a game called Bounce where older and younger players talk on the phone and try to figure out what 10 things they have in common in 10 minutes. What it does is also creates new friendships. I love going out and having to do a scavenger hunt with people who I've just met because we have to run around and get pictures with people and things and then get back in time. It creates a common goal while building up our trust in each other and while allowing us to get to know each other. It is not uncommon in the theater world for shows to begin with getting to know you exercises. It allows for the cast to grow stronger together faster and become a team. Games like Bounce allow for people in the world to become a team.
The final section of Part 2 is Happiness Hacking. In this chapter she talks about a great game called Cruel 2 B Kind on page 174. In the game everyone starts out on their own and has different "attacks" using smiles, compliments and winks, etc. The game gets played out in a park, or a city block where people don't know who is playing and who isn't. People not playing can actually get caught in the crossfire, but it's ok because the game is so pleasant. By playing games like this people are helping to spread a little bit of joy out there into the world. There was a time that I was in Central Park in NYC and I was watching a group of people all tie a ballon next to their feet. They would then spread out and wait for a bell to ring. Then when the bell rang they all ran around and tried to stomp out the balloons of the other players. It was like flag football but a game that everyone could play. Even kids because feet are an area that everyone can reach. While I was not playing it, I was made happy to watch it. It looked fun and made me thing that I would want to play that game someday with my friends.
There are many more games that she mentions in this book and you should buy it and read it!
Part 3 coming next!
Jason
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