Output details

MYNI2013

MYNI is an innovative approach to tackling a set of research questions:

· How can game structures and ‘gamefullness’ be used to promote regional tourism?

· Can game structures be used to aggregate assets for a company?

· Can games as a Social Technology be used to question or to foster civic pride in a region?

This research was commissioned by the Northern Irish Tourist Board from earlier exploratory projects into behaviour and gaming. It innovated particularly by running as a photography and location-based game for 6 weeks during May 2013 and further developed into a new iteration for August 2013.

MYNI experiments with looser play and game structures than those normally associated with the "gameification" approach (which maps game systems onto pre-defined desired outcomes). By experimenting with play features - feedback through scoreboards, setting objectives to overcome and missions to complete - the research investigates new approaches to engaging audiences. The project, in other words, uses methods rooted in game studies to help crowd source information, assets and publicity. In particular, it explores how games can be utilised to help engage the public in reinterpreting and re-imagining geographic and tourist spaces in Northern Ireland and offers an alternative to traditional top-down re-branding exercises.

The project asked players to complete tasks locked to regional locations and submit documentary evidence of their achievements. The results are evidenced through a series of reports recording traffic, reach, user numbers and company impact studies.

Due to its success this research is currently developing into a permanent initiative for the Tourist Board to help them engage new audiences, help to develop internal tourism in the region and aggregate publicity materials for their company. The project is planned to run in a monthly cycle for discovernorthernireland.com