Chapter 3

Here’s were we will put color versions of the images, updates, and other extras.

This chapter deals with how things change when we change from traditional or analog solutions to interactive digital ones. There are repeated discussions and debates in the serious games community about the relative meanings of simulation and game, and there is no consensus. This chapter will explain and justify our perspective.

Traditional Vs. Computer Simulations in Education
1. What is an Educational Simulation?
  1. Brief History Of Educational Simulations
  2. The Edutainment Era
  3. The Simulation-Game Continuum
What is a Game?
The Problem With Reality
All Games Are Simulations
Synergy: Analog Sims and Games Meet Computer Simulations and Games
1. What They Share
2. How Going Digital Changes Things
  1. Base Model
  2. Rules
  3. Affordances
  4. Validity
  5. Closure
Summary
1. Concepts
2. Terminology
References, Notes & Further Resources

Images

*Please note: all images are copyrighted, permission to use an image must be obtained from Wiley (and possibly also the original sources).

Figure 3-2 The Analog View of the Simulations – Games Relationship

Figure 3-3: The Education View of the Simulations – Games Continuum

Figure 3-3 The Technical View of the Simulations - Games Relationship — Figure 3-3 The Technical View of the Simulations – Games Relationship

Table 3.1 provides a summary of the differences and when viewed as a set provides a compelling argument that digital simulations are sufficiently different from analog ones that they must be viewed as distinct entities.

Table 3-1: Digital vs Non-Digital Simulations and Games
	Digital	Analog
	Digital Simulations and Games (ALL)	Board & Card Games	Analog Simulation Games	Analog Role-Playing Games	Live Action Role-Play (including cosplay)
Model of Original System	Painstakingly and precisely defined	Many details taken for granted and never made explicit
Rule Enforcement	hard-coded	uses ‘honor system’	on the fly
Rule Structures	Pre-determined	Negotiable
Roles	accurate placement into context	Imagined, personally mediated	Determined by game rules		Imagined, personally mediated
Environment	Dynamic – same for all players	Static – unchanging	Combined static physical artifacts (boards & pieces) AND imagined		Imagined: personalized
Environment Resolution	dynamic	static physical	relatively static	relatively static	Individually mediated
Game Objects	can be autonomous	either inert or mechanical			imagined ( can include props)
Game Interaction (what people can do with / to the game)	consistent across all instantiations of the game	consistent only if the rules are followed			each instantiation can be different
Participants	there need only be one human participant	All participants are human