Beyond-the-Ice: Designing Games for Facilitating Deeper Conversations

Abstract

In this age of constant communication, we’ve never been more connected, yet all of our numerous, fast, and convenient connections lack the depth and intimacy we truly crave. The desire for more authentic social experiences necessitates vulnerability, honesty, and risk; but introducing such dynamics presents a great challenge in the context of the wider landscape of public discourse. Designers across disciplines have suggested using games to facilitate stronger social connection, since the structures within games can expose players to alternate social norms and encourage risk-taking. However, few have designed games that specifically foster more intimate forms of dialogue or offer scaffolding for players to see the act of sharing authentically and listening deeply as ways to play. In this thesis, I explore the novel intersection between play, intimate conversation, and technology by presenting a variety of prototypes and fully developed games that employ innovative mechanics designed to facilitate authenticity, vulnerability, complexity, and subjectivity. This work builds on formal knowledge from the social sciences, HCI, and game design, as well as informal knowledge from facilitation, gathering practices, party games, and Tarot, by presenting five distinct design principles aligned with theories grounded in past work: 1) Make emotional disclosure special; 2) Scaffold responsiveness; 3) Approach depth through fun; 4) Empower “the work” through constraints and permissions; 5) Center objects to feel with. Following a thorough Research through Design (RfD) method, I designed 15 unique prototypes and proof-of-concepts which explore various aspects of the five principles. Two of the games were designed, developed, playtested, and evaluated – Analogia, a card game that uses generative images to inspire emotion-rich conversations and Crossroads, a digital game where players are guided to unlock a secret insight by co-creating generative images inspired one another’s real experiences. This work contributes two well-tested games that evoke five compelling principles; a series of mechanics for stimulating dialogue (dual-stimulus, bridge-and-tunnel, image scrying, listener roles); and pilot data from playtests that demonstrate the ability and challenge of these mechanics to create conversational outcomes. Additionally, both spotlighted games creatively employ generative artificial intelligence (AI) to help mediate player interactions through image interpretation and co-creation. Although this is a thesis about conversation games, it critically engages with the current social zeitgeist, provides widely applicable insights and presents nuanced ways to think about the future of social-technical systems that seek to encourage deeper, more authentic ways of connecting.