Libraries have always supported the information, recreation and education needs of their clients. In a mobile enabled world, library clients use their devices for all three of these purposes as well. In this Thing we’d like to explore some of the recreational aspects of mobile apps and the potential for gamification and games in some library activities.

DISCOVER

• Many people use their mobile devices to play games, for example:
  • Angry Birds – with several “special editions” and one spinoff game in addition to the original game, and over 1.7 billion downloads by March 2013, it is the most downloaded mobile game. There’s even an official magician, Simon Pierro.
  • Dots (reviewed here).
  • Classic games such as Tetris.
• Gamification (“the use of game thinking and game mechanics in a non-game context in order to engage users and solve problems”) and libraries, for example Librarygame

EXPLORE

• Mobile devices have many recreational and lifestyle uses – here’s just a few:
  • Culinary inspiration, e.g. Epicurious or Allrecipes, and nutrition, e.g. Aisle Won
  • Interior design, e.g. Houzz Interior Design Ideas or ColorSmart by BEHR Mobile
  • Gardening and landscaping, e.g. Australian iPad garden app: The Garden Planner
  • Following sporting events or your favourite team, e.g. SBS Tour de France Skoda Tour Tracker, Cricbuzz or BBC Sports
• Interactive gamification workshop at Next Library 2013 .
• Find more links on our Pinterest board .

THINKING POINTS

• Kids and mobile games – what’s popular? How can you find out? Could you integrate some of these games into your library’s programs for children?
• If you could develop a game for mobile devices, what would it be? We’ve already encountered several apps that can be used to gamify aspects of your library service (eg. SCVNGR, geocaching)
• National Parks New South Wales, Australia, has developed an iPad app as part of their Wilderquest program for children – could your library develop an app?
• Could you use games in programs at your library?  eg. designing games using Game Salad