Melda M. Washington

Information Culture, October 8, 2012

“Dopamine Squirters”

Overview

Introduction – Why Dopamine? Definition Salience Games “Dopamine Squirters” Mashup Games Conclusion

Introduction – Why Dopamine? Conversation with fellow student Behavior:

Anxiety Depression Relaxation

Dopamine

Definition

Primary neurotransmitter (chemicals in the brain that help communicate messages from cell to cell) found in the brain that is responsible for happiness and other emotions.

It is essential for the normal functioning of the central nervous system.

Provides feelings of enjoyment and reinforcement that motivate a person proactively to “feel good.”

Sometimes referred to as the: “reward chemical” “pleasure molecule” “anti-stress” molecule

Salience

Wikipedia states that Dopamine may also have a role in the salience or ‘noticeableness’ of important stimuli, such as sources of: Reward Danger

This hypothesis argues that dopamine assists decision-making by influencing the priority, or level of desire, of such stimuli to the person concerned.

It has been argued that dopamine is more associated with anticipatory desire and motivation (commonly referred to as "wanting") as opposed to actual consummatory pleasure (commonly referred to as "liking").

Games

A study in 1998 monitored changes in dopamine levels from subjects who were playing a video game. Noted that dopamine levels increased during game play “at

least twofold” or doubled Games that are challenging or competitive increases

dopamine level. Stimulation provokes excitement, in its absence,

people feel bored. Patterns of intermittent reinforcement over time can

release dopamine squirts. This “intermittent reinforcement” is the addictive

quality of games and it affects people at the core level.

“Dopamine Squirters”

Many popular games are “dopamine squirters” by: Deliver dopamine in small, frequent doses Give periodic, positive reinforcement Have achievements and leaderboards “Nags” (come play me alerts) Measurable, identifiable, frequent progress Give users a reason to come back to your game Players will play anything if they can advance,

compete, or compare.

Mashup Games – programmableweb

Programmableweb lists 173 mashups tagged games.

Most poplar are FlickerSudoku and Wii Earth.

APIs used include: Flicker MicrosoftBingMapsGoogleMaps

Mashup Games - localiz.me

An online treasure hunt game on Google Maps.

APIs used include: GoogleStreetViewImage, GoogleMaps.

Mashup Games - musicpopquiz.com

Guess the artist from a song clip or a picture.

Questions are randomly generated from the 7digital* catalogue and get more difficult as you progress through levels.

Compare scores with others.

APIs used include: 7digital.

*7digital is a digital media delivery company.

Mashup Games - Climatecraft

A Minecraft mod that adds tracking of carbon emissions using the AMEE API.

APIs used include: AMEE.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0DfI98DuDM

Conclusion

Mining the dopamine center for all it's worth If you are aware:

of the patterns of intermittent reinforcement that over time, this can release dopamine squirts

when people use your game anyone can be conditioned with the help of this

pattern. YOU can design a game that fits into this pattern

and take advantage of it. Marketers are testing that this dopamine-rush

moment is the perfect time to reach out with a brand message.

References

http://blogs-images.forbes.com/insertcoin/files/2012/03/gaming-graphic.jpg

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/technology/07brain.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

http://gamertherapist.com/blog/2011/11/08/dopey-about-dopamine-video-games-drugs-addiction/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dopamine http://

www.nrc-iol.org/cores/mialab/fijc/files/2002/120402_koepp_nature_1998.pdf

http://www.kotancode.com/2010/12/30/dopamine-squirts-intermittent-reinforcement-and-mobile-apps/