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Serious Games (SGs) are defined as “games that do not have entertainment, enjoyment or fun as their primary purpose” while the “seriousness” of these games refers to content that may clearly be used as learning material by teachers (Djaouti, Alvarez & Jessel, 2011). Although there is a perception that SGs are lacking fun or their primary purpose is other than amusement, Abt who was the first that used this term systematically, continued, arguing that, “this does not mean that serious games are not, or should not be, entertaining” (Abt, 1970, p.9). The main research aim of this work is to examine University students’ views towards SGs features. Especially, we focused on a variety of factors such as gender, Information and Communication Technology skills, game-playing experience and specific scientific background i.e. natural and social, and their possible impact on game design (2D or 3D) regarding perceived learning effectiveness.
Well-designed SGs can boost learning outcomes and this can be expressed in a measurable way (Erhel & Jamet, 2019; Girard, Ecalle & Magnan, 2013; Granic, Lobel & Engels, 2014; de Freitas & Liarokapis, 2011). SGs learning and gaming components are ought to be well balanced in order to provide an immersive educational experience. Additionally, to the leaning and gaming balance, fun is also a very important feature of a good SG because it is supportive to engagement and motivational processes (Franzwa, Tang, Johnson & Bielefeldt, 2014; Kaimara & Deliyannis, 2019; Westera, 2019). SGs promote conceptual understanding through direct interaction and feature immediate feedback generated by the game environment (Boyle, Connolly & Hainey, 2011; Stapleton, 2004). The educational experience within an SG can be contrasted to actual game experience where the player assumes the role of the key character. Game-based environments are more immersive and engaging in terms of both technology and game design (Arnab, Berta, Earp, De Freitas, Popescu, Romero, Stanescu & Usart, 2012; Deliyannis & Kaimara, 2019). The game environment is enhanced with narration, hidden backstory and adventure or exploratory features (Faizan, Löffler, Heininger, Utesch, & Krcmar, 2019). Game interaction and feedback elements allow players to play and progress at their own pace (Federoff, 2002; Sweetser & Wyeth, 2005). On the other hand, SGs offer teaching tools to educators that motivate student’s interest in the educational content. However, there are different challenges when SGs introduced into the classroom.