DATA TRAP
Game Design + Research
PROJECT GUIDE: Tanishka Kachru
at National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad.
2019
Data Trap is a board game made to create awareness amongst preteens, who have unsupervised access to the internet, about safe and risky practices related to protecting one's data in the Information Age.
Data privacy relates to how a piece of information should be collected, shared and used based on its relative importance. It concerns consent, notice, sensitivity, and regulation.
The past year saw a significant shift in public consciousness in personal data protection and it has become a huge point of interest amongst people all around the world.
This project was exhibited at Hyderabad Design Week 2019, held between 9th and 13th October.
PHASE 1: PRELIMINARY RESEARCH
The first step was to do primary and secondary research to understand the current scenario and find the threats with long-lasting impact.
ACLU's Scary Pizza: A Speculative Situation
donottrack: An Interactive Documentary
PHASE 2: ANALYSIS AND DEFINING CONTEXT
I chose to target children of the age 8 to 13 years as they were the ones who have just started, or will soon start using the internet unsupervised. (based on Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development)
It was imperative to teach them the relationship between privacy and personal security, and show them what steps they can take in their daily lives.
PHASE 3: IDEAS AND CONCEPTS
Studies show that by focussing on how something is taught, especially by play, there stays a greater impact on learning.
(EdTech Review)
Mind-mapping to understand play and learning
Persona studies of the target audience
PHASE 4: CONTEXTUAL RESEARCH
The first steps here were to understand how to make a game, and then go about creating the content and play for the game. Namely, what the incentive is, and how a player moves and wins.
PHASE 5: TESTS AND PROTOTYPES
Versions of the game were made and user tested to see whether the play was fun or repetitive; if it was timed alright; if players understood the game easily and enjoyed playing it. The game needed branding and packaging that tied in with the entire play.
User testing
Laying out the game play
THE GAME
A leaflet telling one about the game, the instructions of play, and a glossary of terms in and related to the game.
Data Trap was exhibited as a part of NID's exhibit at Hyderabad Design Week 2019.
Under the themes, Humanising Design and Design for Social Development, Data Trap explored the question: How can design humanise our relationship with technology?
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