Gameful Collecting: Shrine

Gameplay interface of a room

One in three people are considered collectors and collect artifacts along a similar theme, such as stamps, coins, or sports memorabilia for which function is a secondary purpose.  Stories and narrative are often attached to these items and are an important part of the collecting process. However, when these collections are digitized, stories can often be lost. To determine how we can better support the collecting process, we conducted semi-structured interviews of collectors of hockey memorabilia. The interviews highlighted narrative, organization, and authenticity as important to collectors, as well as the need to support collecting as an emergent behaviour.  Using these interviews we formed a set of design guidelines and then we created a gameful sandbox environment for collectors of hockey memorabilia, where collectors can create virtual trophy room spaces similar to the physical spaces they already engage in creating.

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