Habitica (https://habitica.com/) is a free iOS, Android and web application which uses gasification as a way of creating habits. The app lets you input goals and, as you tick them off, gives you credits and experience points. This game allows a player to create a character and battle monsters as they complete their goals. This use of positive reinforcement, I think, is a really good and accessible use of gamification. Habitica has earned a lot of credibility and has been featured by Forbes, The New York Times and Discover.
Though this service has the ability to be used to influence a healthy lifestyle, it doesn’t primarily target health and fitness. If it did, it would be a great way of inspiring young children to live healthily. The fact that it gamifies aspects of life means that it would be a fun and potentially competative way of incramenting healthy habits and abolishing unhealthy habits in a child’s day to day life. Habitica doesn’t seem to be targeted toward the audience of 8-11 year olds whom I want to reach. The stylisation and optimisation of the app doesn’t appeal to allow ease of use for a young child, and I don’t believe would be entertaining enough for a child in that demographic. Though the app may be a good gimmick as an aid to change habits, I believe the gasification aspects of it could be more optimised toward the game side to make it seem like more of a game and less of a lifestyle app.
How could it be targeted to a younger demographic?
1. The registration process of the app requires a Facebook, Google or email account. Despite more and more children having access to these things in this digital age, I believe that this process is unessential and uninteresting for 8-11 year olds. Being able to immediately create a character and start playing for be far better suited for a younger audience.
2. By allowing more focus on character creation creation, it would allow the user to have a higher level of attachment to the avatar. Habitica’s current character creation isn’t heavily focused on and is a lot more passive, besides weapon and armour upgrades.
3. A higher focus on the game and gameplay itself instead of on lifestyle changes would make the app more entertaining and would help retain attention of younger players. Yes, some focus on lifestyle changes are crucial, but this should appear secondary in order to disguise the less exciting aspects.
4. If a competitive aspect was added (i.e. a way to battle and challenge friends or other players) it would give another motive for players to continue playing and level up. For example, if the way to level up the character, gain experience and ready the character for battle was eating healthy, then the player could battle friends with these characters it would give the player great initiative for a healthy lifestyle while having fun.
5. An issue with the app is that it can be exploited with false data. Though this is an issue that is extremely hard to tackle, there could be ways to at least help prevent it. If with each action photographic evidence had to be provided or even something as small as a written example of why experience was earned it would help with the prevention of cheating and griefing. Another thing that could be added is clear guidelines. With clear guidelines, the app would be more understandable and there would be less room for error in terms of the player reward system.
6. Though Habitica works well as an all-around habit altering application, if it was optimised towards one clear goal (like healthy living) there would be a lot less ambiguity and balance. If it were optimised, it could categorise activities which would make it easier for young players to follow, as well as incorporating suggestions for activities and possibly even daily challenges (like “do 10 push ups” or”eat a vegetable”).
7. The stylisation of the app isn’t fun. It’s simple and easy to understand, but it isn’t exciting. This is probably because it doesn’t necessarily need to be, as I imagine it’s demographic as it stands is probably teens and young adults who are looking to change their life styles in a more interesting way, as opposed to play a fun game. A less business-like layout would be more appealing to a younger demographic. It could be improved if it actually resembled a game more with original graphics and interface, opposed to looking like thousands of other application.
8. Adding more activities within the game/app would make it more immersive. Like telling the player to do exercise to earn an achievement or complete a quest. Instead of being a passive app which logs when you complete a pre determined action which the player has set, there could be challenges that the app gives the player. Again, there could be daily quests and/ or a storymode. If there where different levels of storymode, like different levels (in 2 sense) of physical activity that get harder as the player progresses. and the daily challenge was to have a healthy meal.
Overall, this application has provided a lot of food for though and inspiration in terms of a gamified application which could be used to get children to be more healthy and active.