Creating authentic experiences within a serious game context: Evaluation of engagement and learning

Abstract

The potential of serious games is in their ability to facilitate engaging learning experiences for the user. This paper describes a serious game that has been designed using a framework that aligns instructional objectives with coregameplay. Catastrophe, the Occupational Health and Safety game developed for this project, has been evaluated to determine the extent to which it promotes both engagement and learning. In comparison to e-Learning methods, the game produces significantly better learning outcomes and significantly higher levels of intrinsic motivation. The quantitative and qualitative results of this study are reported and discussed.