Implicit Gamification: Human-Focused Design that Utilizes Game Elements
Implicit Gamification is a form of design that subtly employs gamification techniques and the 8 Core Drives of Octalysis into the user experience. Implicit Gamification techniques are filled with game design elements that are sometimes even invisible to the user. This is like a doorknob, where the best designs are the ones that you aren’t even aware of but simply use to open the door.
Implicit Gamification examples are often discussed in gamification literature, such as the LinkedIn Progress Bar24, the intrinsic motivation that drives Wikipedia25, competitive bidding and feedback system via eBay26, social comparison and motivation in OPower27, and Unpredictability and Scarcity within Woot!28.
Upon seeing the progress bar on LinkedIn, most people won’t say, “Ah, they’re making me play a game! I don’t want to play games.” The Progress Bar just gently builds a Win-State for...