Gamification and a Worldwide Obsession with Badges

Badges! We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Badges! On this episode of MashUp Radio Peter Biddle and Scott Steinberg, CEO of Tech Savvy Digital and regular contributor to Rolling Stone, CNN, USA Today, and more will talk about the rise in the use of “Gamification” to engage audiences across numerous subjects. From geo-location applications like Foursquare to educational and enterprise businesses, the idea of the using of game design techniques and mechanics to solve problems and engage audiences has become a worldwide phenomena.  However, the term "gamification" and the practices it describes have received negative attention from game industry professionals, business consultants as well as some executives, academics, and communications professionals. There has been some backlash that “Gamification” is simply a buzz word for techniques that have been in place for a long time. So what is truly “Gamification”? Why are so many companies adopting this technique for engaging people? What is our obsession with badges, trophies and rewards? Will this trend continue or die as a short-term “fad”? Where can we see the direction of rewards and rewards companies/applications going? These questions and more will be discussed and answered on the show.