{"id":6750,"date":"2018-02-03T09:35:50","date_gmt":"2018-02-03T16:35:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/?p=6750"},"modified":"2021-02-17T09:10:15","modified_gmt":"2021-02-17T16:10:15","slug":"whats-the-difference-between-serious-games-educational-games-and-game-based-learning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2018\/02\/03\/whats-the-difference-between-serious-games-educational-games-and-game-based-learning\/","title":{"rendered":"What&#8217;s the difference between serious games, educational games, and game-based learning?"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> &lt; 1<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute<\/span><\/span><p>This question keeps coming up. Here&#8217;s a handy table to help.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6751 size-large\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2-1024x758.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"474\" srcset=\"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2-1024x758.png 1024w, https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2-300x222.png 300w, https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2-768x569.png 768w, https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2.png 1476w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2015\/06\/21\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-my-version\/\">This is an updated version of the table I created back in 2015.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Note: This image is not to be posted anywhere or re-used without my written permission.<\/p>\n<p>Citation: Becker, K. (Feb 3, 2018).\u00a0What&#8217;s the difference between serious games, educational games, and game-based learning? Retrieved from https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Hsb6-1KS<\/p>\n<p>(You are free to disagree with me, just don\u2019t present this table as yours).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Addendum 2021: A newer version of this chart has been peer-reviewed and published on academia.edu.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.academia.edu\/45044609\/What_s_the_difference_between_gamification_serious_games_educational_games_and_game_based_learning\" rel=\"nofollow ugc\">https:\/\/www.academia.edu\/45044609\/What_s_the_difference_between_gamification_serious_games_educational_games_and_game_based_learning<\/a><br \/>\nCitation: Becker, K. (2021). What\u2019s the difference between gamifcation, serious games, educational games,and game-based learning? Academia Letters, Article 209. <a href=\"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.20935\/AL209\" rel=\"nofollow ugc\">https:\/\/doi.org\/10.20935\/AL209<\/a><\/p>\n<div class='wp_likes' id='wp_likes_post-6750'><a class='like' href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(6750);\" title='Like' ><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/plugins\/wp-likes\/images\/like.png\" alt='' border='0'\/><\/a><span class='text'><b>4<\/b> people like this post.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class='like' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.like(6750);\">Like<\/a><\/div>\n<div class='unlike' ><a href=\"javascript:wp_likes.unlike(6750);\">Unlike<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><span class=\"span-reading-time rt-reading-time\" style=\"display: block;\"><span class=\"rt-label rt-prefix\">Approximate Reading Time: <\/span> <span class=\"rt-time\"> &lt; 1<\/span> <span class=\"rt-label rt-postfix\">minute<\/span><\/span>This question keeps coming up. Here&#8217;s a handy table to help. This is an updated version of the table I created back in 2015. Note: This image is not to be posted anywhere or re-used without my written permission. Citation: &hellip; <a class=\"more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2018\/02\/03\/whats-the-difference-between-serious-games-educational-games-and-game-based-learning\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,12,352,14,396,24],"tags":[389,225,391,126,392,416,362],"class_list":["post-6750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-educational-technology","category-games","category-gamification-2","category-general","category-serious-games","category-teaching-learning","tag-educational-technology","tag-game-based-learning","tag-games","tag-gamification","tag-general","tag-teaching-learning-and-tagged-book","tag-teaching-and-learning"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4Hsb6-1KS","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4821,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2015\/06\/21\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-my-version\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":0},"title":"Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification &#8211; My Version","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"June 21, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"In response to the other day's post about the differences between these terms, I have produced my own table outlining the differences. You'll notice mine is a little more complex. That's because the differences are more complex than the original one implied. Note: This image is not to be posted\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Book","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/book\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"game-gbl-gamification","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/game-gbl-gamification1-1024x820.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/game-gbl-gamification1-1024x820.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/06\/game-gbl-gamification1-1024x820.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5760,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2015\/09\/25\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-new-infographic-but-still-wrong\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":1},"title":"Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification : New Infographic, but still wrong.","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"September 25, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"This same group (Upside Learning) posted a very similar infographic back in June. Although a few things have been changed, the table they present to show the differences is identical to the one they published in June. Sadly, it may be simplified, but it's still as wrong now as it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Academia&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Academia","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/academia\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"game-gbl-gamification","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/game-gbl-gamification-1024x8201.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/game-gbl-gamification-1024x8201.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/game-gbl-gamification-1024x8201.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6754,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2018\/02\/04\/whats-the-difference-between-serious-games-educational-games-and-game-based-learning-episode-2\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":2},"title":"What\u2019s the difference between serious games, educational games, and game-based learning? Episode 2","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"February 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"I recently posted a table explaining the differences between games, serious games, educational, games, GBL, etc. \u00a0 I thought a concrete example might help to understand the distinctions. Say we are using\u00a0The Parable of the Polygons\u00a0to help a high school class learn about diversity. This is a wonderful little game\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Educational Technology&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Educational Technology","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/educational-technology\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/02\/game-gbl-gamification-2.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":4801,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2015\/06\/19\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":3},"title":"Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"June 19, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"So many people are confused about the differences between these terms. Unfortunately, this article just muddies the waters further. Games vs Game-based Learning vs Gamification | The Upside Learning Blog. It's a great effort, but I'm afraid none of these are quite right.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Book&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Book","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/book\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.upsidelearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-key-differences.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.upsidelearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-key-differences.png?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.upsidelearning.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/games-vs-game-based-learning-vs-gamification-key-differences.png?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4164,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2014\/08\/09\/comparing-gamification-serious-games-and-simulations\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":4},"title":"Comparing Gamification, Serious Games and Simulations","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"August 9, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Comparing Gamification, Serious Games and Simulations. \u00a0 My last post complained about being shut down on several LinkedIn groups because I disagreed with the poster. This is one of the articles that apparently needed to be protected by flagging my post. This group defines gamification, serious games, and simulation like\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Computers&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Computers","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/computers-2\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"BU072083","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/08\/BU072083-269x300.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7821,"url":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/2026\/03\/25\/on-learning-through-playful-experiences\/","url_meta":{"origin":6750,"position":5},"title":"On Learning Through Playful Experiences","author":"Katrin Becker","date":"March 25, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"This is a podcast interview I did recently. https:\/\/www.universityxp.com\/podcast\/160 In this episode of Experience Points, serious games expert Katrin Becker explores why \u201cgood enough\u201d may be more powerful than perfection in gamified learning. She argues that focusing on defined criteria rather than comparison increases student agency and supports a wider\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Assessment&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Assessment","link":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/category\/assessment\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/good-enoughs-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6750"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6750\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7466,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6750\/revisions\/7466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/minkhollow.ca\/beckerblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}