Gamification

Gamification sounds fun and exciting, doesn’t it? everyone enjoys playing different kinds of games. In web and mobile apps, adding game-like features like points, badges, vectors, and other playful design elements in non-game environments makes the experience more engaging and enjoyable. These features are called game mechanics, and they make something more interactive, interesting, and motivating.

Adding game mechanics such as points and levels to applications makes user experiences more engaging and rewarding. But gamification isn’t just about scoring points; each app or software that uses gamification has its own unique concept and purpose. To make it effective, we need to consider the users: how they feel, what motivates them, and how these elements contribute to the app’s success.

App Use Cases

In mobile apps, we often see gamification features like points, rewards, trophies, and more, but beyond these, consider the user's actual needs and motivations. When developing gamified experiences, we need to think about how each element supports user interest and involvement. There are more different gamified software or apps have involved but see they all have added the game mechanic but utilized the points, and reward system based on the purpose, there is no need to fit all the gamified elements, it should be designed again based on the user needs and purpose of the app, so UX research, and like user testing, feedback, brainstorming, are all helping them to build a meaningful gamified application.

Taking this example in software, adding a small gamified thing can make a change. Think of how teachers use stars, smiley faces, or encouraging notes in student notebooks; they motivate the student to build confidence, keep them encouraged, and make them feel happy.

One of the examples, in 1912, the snack brand company called ‘Cracker Jack’ started putting a toy surprise inside every box of popcorn, making their product fun through marketing. This transformed the product into an experience, and using game-like elements makes engaging the customers. It was one of the earliest examples of gamified marketing, and after other companies have used toys and other things for fun and as a way to sell products (this example is referred in some blogs and courses).

Coming back to the digital apps, we all know there are more popular apps across different domains—one of the popular examples is Duolingo, a language learning app that uses playful characters and level-based animations to make the experience fun and engaging. One of the parts that makes the apps feel good is microcopy.

Microcopy is a key element of UX writing. It's user-friendly, the text you see on buttons, pop-ups, notifications, and system messages. Whether it’s a success message, an error, a notification, or a reminder. For example, instead of a just saying “Congratulations,” using something like “Woohoo! You did it!” makes the app customized and experience more friendly, and for the error messages instead of saying “No input” or “No data available,” using something like “Oops! Let’s fix that—try adding something” makes the message clear and friendly.

Another example of gamified apps includes those we use to connect our smartwatches with their companion apps—like the Fastrack app. Besides showing the time, it has some features like step tracking, exercise timers, articles to read, and even built-in music to play when needed.

And, a few other apps that support social and environmental causes. Apps like JouleBug, EcoDice, and more, that promote sustainable living by encouraging users to adopt eco-friendly practices, and each app focuses on a specific area of sustainability, helping users to have a positive impact.

Quick overview – Understand Game Mechanics

In a non-game context, to create a meaningful experience, it’s important to understand the app’s purpose and the user’s needs. That means doing deeper UX research, knowing who users are, and finding out what motivates them, what keeps them engaged. These help select the right game mechanics and make every interaction more interesting.

And on the gaming mechanism, it does not need to include every element; it should be based on what your project and users actually need. Overloading the interface with too many features can distract users, and so the main purpose can be missed. The important thing is to enhance motivation and enjoyment.

Thoughtful selection of gamification elements helps keep users focused, feels good, and they come back again to the apps.

Tip:

UX writing is important - when the text matches the app’s concept, it helps users understand what to do. Clear, thoughtful messaging makes every interaction smoother and more intuitive, whether the app includes gamified features or not.

Quick note on gamified elements: Instead of using generic reward points, try designing and adding your branding, your app’s concept, or visual style to create custom reward elements. This makes the experience more interesting, visually appealing, and enjoyable for users— just an extra special flavor for the app.

And that’s 3mins