A narrative-driven design approach for casual games with children

Abstract

This paper proposes a design approach to build casual games by children for children. Children understand game narratives with previously acquired schemata that is different from adults. Hence, integrating narrative developed by children themselves into game design may serve the children well. Using a narrative approach to game design based on informant design methods, the proposed approach aims to maximize the contribution of both children informants and adult designers. It comprises of three major phases, namely Narrative Design, Game Design and Design Moderation. A mobile phone game was developed based on this approach. User testing revealed that the children generally enjoyed the game and that the proposed approach has promising potential in empowering the child designers. Future work will focus on further evaluation of the approach for refinement.