(This article is written by Sergio Ligato, an Octalysis Prime Member who became a Senior Consultant/Design of the Octalysis Group).
The Role of Gamification in Community-Driven Change
As a senior consultant at The Octalysis Group, I’ve had the privilege of witnessing numerous projects leverage gamification to create tangible social impact.
My experience at the second edition of the ECCO Alessandria Digital Forum, held from May 23-25, 2024, was particularly significant.
During this event I had the opportunity to participate in the ECCO Hackathon, a digital competition aimed at designing innovative solutions to promote civic engagement through digital tools.
The hackathon brought together 35 participants, organized into six teams, who worked for ten consecutive hours to create original projects.
Among these, one stood out for its ability to combine innovation with social impact: ReeAL. This project, presented by the Alessandria-based association “In bocca al lupo,” captivated the jury for its approach to stimulating community engagement through urban regeneration.
With my deep understanding of the Octalysis framework, I immediately recognized ReeAL’s potential to mobilize the community by strategically activating key Core Drives.
The Challenge
The ECCO Hackathon posed an exciting challenge: teams were tasked with generating the best original ideas that incorporated a digital component, all centered around themes of civic engagement, social responsibility, and the commons.
As an expert in gamification, this challenge immediately brought to mind the central dynamics of the Octalysis framework. In the early hours of the competition, I focused on how to best harness the 8 Core Drives of Octalysis to create a project that could effectively capture and sustain the citizens’ attention, encouraging them to participate actively.
Gamification Example: The ReeAL Project
ReeAL quickly emerged as an effective response to the hackathon challenge. The project was conceived with a clear reflection of gamification principles. Its name, “ReeAL,” cleverly combines the concepts of regeneration (“Re”) and Alessandria (“AL”), with a nod to the word “real,” underscoring its potential for real-world impact.
ReeAL is structured as a collective game where the community becomes the active protagonist in urban regeneration. Schools, acting as the main “players,” adopt a neglected area of the city and organize micro-events to transform it into a vibrant and welcoming space. Citizen participation is encouraged through a simple yet effective mechanism: reactions on WhatsApp. These feedbacks, converted into “Regeneration Points” and virtual coins called “REEALS,” incentivize classes to continue organizing events, creating a virtuous cycle of improvement and participation.
The local administration and regional businesses play a crucial role in logistically and institutionally supporting these micro-events, contributing to the concrete realization of the initiatives proposed by the schools. The project not only stimulates the creativity and initiative of students but also has a positive impact on the entire community by promoting collaboration among various local stakeholders.
By utilizing simple digital tools like WhatsApp and a dedicated website, ReeAL ensures broad inclusion, breaking down technological barriers and enabling everyone to participate actively. This approach maximizes the social impact of the project while keeping costs low and operational complexity minimal.
Focus on User Groups and Motivational Drives within Gamification
ReeAL is designed to successfully engage a variety of user groups, each finding different motivations to participate actively in the initiative. Through the lens of the Octalysis framework, we can analyze how different Core Drives were harnessed to create a compelling and meaningful gaming experience.
The General Population
The general public will be driven to ReeAL through a combination of novelty and accessibility. The installation of QR codes in the areas to be regenerated, accompanied by signs featuring the project logo, generated a sense of surprise and curiosity (Core Drive 7: Unpredictability & Curiosity).
Digital interactions are kept deliberately simple and accessible, using familiar tools like WhatsApp and a dedicated website (Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment), while ensuring a safe environment for participation through anonymous reactions to posts.
Word-of-mouth played a crucial role in spreading the initiative, as players were encouraged to involve their social circles, thereby increasing the success of the micro-events (Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness).
Finally, the aesthetic and functional improvement of the regenerated spaces provides a tangible sense of ownership and achievement for the population (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling, Core Drive 4: Ownership & Possession).
Organizations and Schools (the Players)
Schools and participating organizations, acting as “players,” will find in ReeAL a unique opportunity to exercise their creativity and leadership. The ability to organize micro-events and select the areas to be regenerated gave them a strong sense of control and ownership (Core Drive 3: Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback, Core Drive 4: Ownership & Possession). Additionally, the project integrates the concept of service learning, where educational activities combine with positive social impact (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling).
Schools receive public recognition for their efforts, both from the community and the local administration, reinforcing their motivation through positive feedback and visibility (Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment, Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness, Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling).
The management of the virtual currency “REEALS” stimulates strategic planning, allowing schools to purchase upgrades for their events (Core Drive 3: Empowerment of Creativity & Feedback).
Local Administration
For the local administration, ReeAL serves as a showcase for demonstrating its ability to generate positive impact through innovative and participatory initiatives.
The desire to establish itself as a forward-thinking administration motivates active participation and support for the project (Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment, Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness).
The achieved results, in terms of urban regeneration and citizen engagement, provides further pride, along with fostering a positive perception among voters (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling, Core Drive 8: Loss & Avoidance).
The administration also initiated partnerships with local businesses to make the initiative economically sustainable, ensuring that the positive impact continues over time (Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness, Core Drive 8: Loss & Avoidance). This collaborative approach helps maximize the benefits for the population (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling, Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness).
Local Businesses
Local businesses see ReeAL as an opportunity to exercise their corporate social responsibility, contributing to the improvement of the environment in which they operate (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling). The associated tax benefits provide additional incentive (Core Drive 4: Ownership & Possession, Core Drive 8: Loss & Avoidance).
Their contribution was not limited to financial aspects; businesses will actively support the initiative, improving the living conditions of the population and their employees (Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling, Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness).
Recognition from the community and administration further strengthened their status as key players in the regeneration of the local context (Core Drive 2: Development & Accomplishment, Core Drive 5: Social Influence & Relatedness, Core Drive 1: Epic Meaning & Calling).
Lessons Learned from these Gamification Examples
Participating in the ECCO Hackathon and developing the ReeAL project provided key insights that can be applied to any initiative focused on community engagement:
The Power of Visuals
Presenting ReeAL through clear and engaging visuals, like infographics, was crucial in helping the jury and audience quickly understand the project’s philosophy and goals. Visual elements make information more memorable and easier to grasp.
Empathy-Driven Design
Understanding the community’s needs and context is essential for creating intuitive and accessible experiences. By connecting with the people they were designing for, the ReeAL team ensured the project resonated with its intended audience.
Simplicity with Ambition
While ReeAL’s concept was simple enough to explain like a board game, it was designed to scale with success. Keeping the design straightforward encouraged broad participation, while leaving room for future growth and impact.
Hope to see more Gamification Examples with Octalysis!
The experience of participating in the ECCO Hackathon and the success of the ReeAL project have once again demonstrated the power of gamification as a tool for promoting community engagement and creating tangible positive impacts.
With its simple yet scalable structure, ReeAL is expected to mobilize resources and catalyze the energy of the Alessandria community towards a common goal of urban regeneration.
This is just the first chapter in ReeAL’s story. The journey towards implementing and developing this project promises to be just as exciting and full of lessons to learn.
In the next part, we will explore the challenges and opportunities that arise during the implementation phase and see how the idea will be translated into reality, continuing to follow the principles of gamification and the Octalysis framework.
