As interactive systems shift toward probabilistic, generative models, algorithmic bias evolves into implicit hallucination and epistemic erasure, creating ecosystemic ripple effects. This paper proposes Restorative Critical Play, a theoretical design framework in practice that looks beyond interaction to interrogate and repair the epistemic violence within Generative AI. Drawing on Critical Design and Black Game Studies, the work argues that designers must expose the entangled realities of generative outputs rather than merely subverting mechanics.

Effective interpersonal and cross-cultural communication relies on pragmatics – knowing what to say to whom, and under what circumstances. Nevertheless, pragmatics is generally absent from formal second language instruction. The current effort describes a game designed to assess people's pragmatic ability. In the game, Awkward Annie, players are asked to intentionally select the most inappropriate things to say within conversations (i.e., be inappropriate and see what happens). Thus, players are able to escape from reality by being inappropriate. This work presents a between-subjects study designed to evaluate this twist using two versions of the game (selecting inappropriate versus appropriate responses). Participants in both conditions experienced the same content, but were provided with different goals (be inappropriate, be appropriate). The results indicate that users enjoyed both versions of game equally but performed better within the appropriate version of the game.

Video games are a popular technology adopted by educators to help teach ideas. The benefits are due to pedagogically beneficial characteristics of such games including their ability to adapt to the learner, allow failure, and entertain and engage players. However, designing a video game is a significant effort that takes time and may not even teach the desired learning objective(s). In this work, we provide a framework that can be used by educators to help determine if the effort needed to create a video game is worth it for a given learning objective(s). Our framework blends four pedagogical ideas so that educators can consider if their game is worth the design effort; these pedagogical tools/theories include: (1) Bloom's taxonomy; (2) the Substitution Augmentation Modification Redefinition (SAMR) Model; (3) Wiggins & McTighe course design approach and filter for learning objectives; (4) what we call, pedagogical logistics. With this framework, we analyze two games we have created, and we determine if the games we created were actually worth the effort. The overall goal is to create a framework and show how it can be used to help other researchers determine if their video game idea is worth creating.

VerilogTown is a game about cars, crashes and hardware design. The game is designed to help teach and practice the hardware description language, Verilog. The game uses the metaphor of traffic signals to help players understand and practice the code needed to implement combinational and sequential logic in digital circuits. Borrowing from the emerging space of human computation games, player solutions in the games can be directly transferred to embedded system for real world use.

In contrast to the trend toward large scale, immersive games that aspire toward the polish and experience of conventional commercial games, the authors offer a design case study for the potential of microgames and assessment. Microgames are designed to be small, pointed experiences more analogous to a single question than an entire exam. Instead of offering diverse mechanics, microgames are small punctuated play experiences. Microgames are rapidly developed games, targeting a relatively narrow set of skills.

You is a game about play and the illusive pursuit of meaningful play. Each level of the game is about problem solving a space for You to meet objectives while making sense of the in-game content. Using the player character You, the player is both making meaning out of nonsense and finding meaning where it is absent. The game is designed as a light-hearted critical reflection on the intersection of narratology and ludology. Players must play with You, I and Them in the immutable structure of meaning making that forms the challenge of the game.

The effects of embedding advertising in digital games has been explored in only a few controlled studies. This research provides results of an efficacy analysis of in-game advertising within the controlled environment of a racing car game, an environment in which advertising blends in naturally. The experiment was designed to understand the effectiveness of in-game advertising for both players and onlookers. Examining players in both Europe and the United States, this study measured how in-game advertising works on those who participate in electronic entertainment and those who watch it. The results indicate that such advertising is more effective for onlookers than for players. Implications for designers and researchers is discussed.

This paper discusses the critical gameplay design project and its newest evolution. After being exhibited in several international venues in 2009-2011, the project has evolved to employ a more pointed critique of game culture and how people play. The paper describes, Big Huggin', an affection game, Match, a game of procedural racism and Healer, and an unshooter about the Nanjing Massacre. These games continue to explore the notion of values in design.

This research proposes a method for producing music via visual composition in a computer-game like environment. This is accomplished through the development of artificial intelligence software that applies the visual rules of standard emergent behaviors to the algorithmic arrangement of musical tones. This research presents the proposed system, defining the algorithm and demonstrating its implementation.

This paper describes the design, development and user study of a text-to-speech system for reviewing email messages. The system retrieves messages, converts them to audio files, and facilitates transferring the messages to a portable listening device. This study reviews the efficacy of such a system and compares the users' ability to comprehend spoken audio messages verses written messages. According to the study the system was successful, but the user interest in the design was only moderate.