For organizations that use IT systems in their primary business or as support of their business processes, optimal alignment between the business strategy and their business information technology (BIT) is critical. However, achieving business information technology alignment remains challenging due to the vast number of choices one has to make. Firstly, one has to choose from a large number of potential BIT practices. Secondly, one has to choose BIT practices that align with the business strategy. Thirdly, one has to understand the dynamics of combining multiple BIT practices. And, finally, as business strategy and BIT practices evolve, one needs to consider the long-term alignment as this has significant consequences for both the business strategy and the overall enterprise architecture. These intricacies of alignment mirror the challenges apparent in other business strategy-practice alignment domains. An example is human resource management and strategy alignment for which a simulation model and serious game has been developed in prior research. Here, we build upon this prior research. In BITInLine players have to select a set of BIT practices with the best strategy fit from a list of 48 different BIT practices. The challenge is to select a combination of practices over multiple consecutive simulated years (rounds within the game) that align to the organisations’ strategic profile, and adapt to the outcomes of the choices made in previous years. Practices in the game are clustered around six key BIT topics emerging from the strategic alignment and enterprise architecture disciplines: (1) service strategy, (2) information & data strategy, (3) platform & application strategy, (4) Infrastructure strategy, (5) security strategy, and (6) operations and performance. In BITInLine feedback on the BITA and the deviation from the desired strategic profile is presented after each round (representing a year of using the selected practices). Using BITInLine, players can experiment with, and in doing so learn from, selecting multiple combinations of BIT practices and experience the outcome of their choices in terms of BITA over multiple simulated years, while adapting their choice of practices to the situation at hand. In the current paper the serious game (re)design to create BITInLine and an initial trial run will be presented.
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The 2014 EU Directive on Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) lays down obligations for the EU Member States to establish a maritime planning process, resulting in a maritime spatial plan by 2020. Consultation should be carried out with local, national and transnational stakeholders. Stakeholder engagement in MSP is complex because of the great number and diversity of maritime stakeholders and the unfamiliarity of some of these stakeholders with MSP and its potential impact. To facilitate stakeholder engagement in MSP, the 'MSP Challenge' table top strategy game was designed and played as part of several stakeholder events in different European countries. The authors study the efficacy of the game for stakeholder engagement. Background and evaluation data of nineteen game sessions with a total of 310 stakeholders with different backgrounds were collected through post-game surveys. Furthermore, the efficacy of the game for stakeholder engagement processes, organised by competent MSP authorities in Scotland and Belgium, is studied in more detail. The results show that the board game, overall, has been a very efficient and effective way of familiarising a great diversity of stakeholders with MSP and to create meaningful interaction and learning among stakeholders in formal planning processes. However, the case studies also show that contextual factors-the level of familiarity with MSP and participants' perception to sustainability-influences the efficacy of the game.
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This paper presents the latest version of the Machinations framework. This framework uses diagrams to represent the flow of tangible and abstract resources through a game. This flow represents the mechanics that make up a game’s interbal economy and has a large impact on the emergent gameplay of most simulation games, strategy games and board games. This paper shows how Machinations diagrams can be used simulate and balance games before they are built.
The presented research project will address parasocial interaction (PSI) directed towards non-player characters (NPCs) within video games. As first described by Horton and Wohl in 1956, the investigation of PSI has been predominantly limited to the context of linear media. Consequently, a significant research gap has emerged, prompting the need for this study. This research endeavors to bridge this gap by conducting multiple studies that delve into different aspects of a character's presence that seem to affect PSI. For example, factors such as obtrusiveness and persistence will be investigated due to their potential influence on the strength of PSI (Hartmann, Schramm, & Klimmt, 2004). Furthermore, the inquiry extends to exploring the collective impact of a group of NPCs on PSI dynamics. To achieve these objectives, the research will employ research through design methods, involving iterative modifications to the NPCs across various test setups. A game-based research environment will be created for participant exposure, leveraging the video game RimWorld (Ludeon Studios, 2018) as a foundational framework that can be adapted as necessary. Employing a quantitative approach, the studies will document the impact different aspects of a character’s presence have on the strength of PSI observed. The outcomes of this research endeavor will be disseminated among fellow game developers through artistic interventions, such as, for example, game jams. This approach seeks to not only contribute to the scholarly understanding of PSI but also offer practical insights in the context of game development.
The scientific challenge is about unraveling the secret of Brazilian and Dutch soccer by capturing successful elements of game play of both countries,, combining expertise from data science, computer science and sport science. Suggested features from literature, as well as several novel ones, will be considered and filtered on how they capture success in soccer. A manageable set of features will then be obtained from various available Dutch datasets (focusing on successful play). Subsequently, the same features will be used to compare playing styles between both countries. Features of game play will be approached from two different angles. The first angle (spearheaded by the Brazilian computer science partner) concerns features that capture the dynamics of game play and characterize aspects of formation on the pitch. The second angle (lead by the Dutch data science partner) will focus on how an attack is built up, and how key events (shots on goal, transitions from defenders to midfielders, etc.) can help to characterize this. For the comparison between countries data will be collected in four different age categories in Brazil and the Netherlands during official games, in order to compare (the development of) game play between both countries. Data will be collected by means of the Local Position Measurement System, for reasons of accuracy and consistency. The applied science part of this proposal is focusing on bridging the gap between fundamental science and soccer practice, i.e. coaches, trainers, clubs and federations. The outcomes of the fundamental part will be implemented in a coach-cockpit, a software application which trainers and coaches can use to (1) decide upon their strategy before a game, (2) analyze player- and team behaviour during a game enabling to adjust the strategy accordingly, and (3) choose and/or design training forms to improve player- and team behaviour.
The scientific challenge is about unraveling the secret of Brazilian and Dutch soccer by capturing successful elements of game play of both countries,, combining expertise from data science, computer science and sport science. Suggested features from literature, as well as several novel ones, will be considered and filtered on how they capture success in soccer. A manageable set of features will then be obtained from various available Dutch datasets (focusing on successful play). Subsequently, the same features will be used to compare playing styles between both countries. Features of game play will be approached from two different angles. The first angle (spearheaded by the Brazilian computer science partner) concerns features that capture the dynamics of game play and characterize aspects of formation on the pitch. The second angle (lead by the Dutch data science partner) will focus on how an attack is built up, and how key events (shots on goal, transitions from defenders to midfielders, etc.) can help to characterize this. For the comparison between countries data will be collected in four different age categories in Brazil and the Netherlands during official games, in order to compare (the development of) game play between both countries. Data will be collected by means of the Local Position Measurement System, for reasons of accuracy and consistency. The applied science part of this proposal is focusing on bridging the gap between fundamental science and soccer practice, i.e. coaches, trainers, clubs and federations. The outcomes of the fundamental part will be implemented in a coach-cockpit, a software application which trainers and coaches can use to (1) decide upon their strategy before a game, (2) analyze player- and team behaviour during a game enabling to adjust the strategy accordingly, and (3) choose and/or design training forms to improve player- and team behaviour.
