"Reality is broken"

One of the best sessions at the Web 2.0 Summit was the 10 minute session with game designer Jane McGonigal. She is a ubiquitous game designer, a games researcher, and a futures forecaster. She is my new idol and will follow her new projects closely.

This was her perspective: instead of thinking about how to make virtual reality more like real life, think about making real life more like games. Why? Because games, networked games specifically, work better than real life. She coined the term "reality is broken".

Why?

1. Games come with better instructions; you have a clear goal, and other people share information on how to succeed.
2. Games give you better feedback on your performance in the form of scores and ratings, plus they provide an audience that’s tuned into your success.
3. Games offer better community—everybody’s agreed to same rules and narrative, and you share a heroic sense of purpose.

You should take these lessons and apply them elsewhere in order to capture the attention of a “huge new market of non-gamers.”

Some articles on Jane McGonigal:
cnet Future games to harness players' collective wisdom
Wired Ask a Scientist: Jane McGonigal