Jane McGonigal makes broad generalizations about the relationships between gameplay and reality in her book, Reality is Broken. McGonigal believes that games have the power to fix what’s wrong with the real world.
One concept she addresses is the idea of “Happiness Hacking”. She believes that alternate realties can help people adopt the happiest habits.
Happiness activities like, practicing random acts of kindness or dancing are some of the practical recommendations that McGonigal cites.
Top Secret Dance-Off or TSDO, is a game McGonigal designed to make it easier for people who are uncomfortable dancing, to experience the same happiness as their extrovert counterparts?
“To dance is to trust.” McGonigal claims. Do you remember a time that you danced alone in a room full of people? Dancing is cited to be one of the most practical ways to achieve genuine happiness and euphoria, but it is not always socially acceptable to experience this feeling on your own terms.
McGonigal says the power of gameplay is that it gives users permission to do things differently. I would argue that there is power in the opportunity to do things differently, but gameplay is not the social force, which drives unconventional behavior. Individuals are less likely to act out of their social norms independently. Game users are following rules that have been set for them by game designers, in games that have multiple players. They are acting in a crowd.
“A crowd carries the social authority to redefine norms.” Crowds play a huge role in the social structures of our society.
What is it about being a part a crowd that makes people feel so safe?
Think about the roar of the crowd screaming front row at Bonnaroo or Country Music Fest. Music festivals have become more and more popular in the last 20 years. Just like a game, a festival is a socially safe place for guests to come together and experience.
In this same respect it can be argued that Facebook and other social media networks came about as a result of a social force that drove the innovation of contemporary virtual networks or crowds.
Dancing provokes social vulnerability and McGonigal thinks that gameplay is the way to elevate these vulnerable feelings, but I think the social norm of this vulnerability can be broken, with the introduction of intense sharing and belonging. Music festivals, games, social networks are all interactive experiences that share one common theme of reinforcing group identity.
Is the alternate reality created in gameplay what helps people adopt happiness habits or is it the alternate reality of membership in a larger group?
Guests at a music festival or Facebook users are living in an alternate reality. Once a user accepts membership into a group, they are able to derive social identities from the said group. Can these identities be manipulated like McGonigal suggests? Only time will tell.
The power now lies in the hands of the designers and artists, who are the brainpower behind the popular music festivals; social media networks; and games, because they are the puppeteers who will decide how the future crowds of our society will experience reality.
Kara O'Halloran 