Dare to be Digital

Video game info:

"Gal-Ex: Spatial Delivery" from Rule of Thumb won an award for the Best Use of Technology in 2006.

Visit the showcase

Dare to be Digital Serious Games

Dare to be Digital Serious Games (Dare Serious) is running for the first time as a pilot scheme alongside Dare 2008. Based on the successful Dare model, Dare Serious will be focusing on games designed for the purpose of education or training. Separate judging criteria will be applied for Dare Serious. The winning team will be eligible for a special £2500 cash prize dedicated to serious games (the same level as the main Dare competition winning teams). However, they will not be eligible for nomination to the BAFTA Ones To Watch Award or for the Channel 4 development brief opportunity. But they are eligible to the Nokia mobile platform award. Potential applicants will need to decide if they are entering the main Dare competition or Dare Serious. Details of the Dare Serious Games pilot competition are set out below:

• Serious games are games that have been designed with purposes beyond pure entertainment in mind, including education, training, health and marketing
• The serious games industry is rapidly growing within every market sector on a global scale, with Microsoft recently estimating the potential market size to be $6 billion by 2011
• Successful serious games effectively integrate domain expertise with the psychology of learning along with games technology and design patterns
• Bringing together these diverse areas requires a multi-disciplinary team with the ability to effectively convey (and sometimes assess) the desired learning outcomes
• We are offering an opportunity for 2-3 teams to compete in Dare to be Digital for Serious Games, with a prize fund of £2500
• The Dare Serious Games will be showcased alongside all Dare games at Dare ProtoPlay 2008.
• Experienced mentors will work with the teams to help them bring their ideas to fruition by providing appropriate technical support and assisting in the commercialisation process, as well as helping to provide access to the target end users of their products
• Where required, teams will also be given support on pedagogy, assessment and the specific domain they are trying to target with their game
• Selection and judging will be based on the same criteria as the main Dare to be Digital competition, with a number of additional aspects considered, such as:
• Ability of the game to effectively convey the stated learning outcomes - i.e. educational/training potential rather than just commercial potential
• Effectiveness and suitability of the learning style and gameplay for the intended target audience

• £2500 for the best serious game

• The University of the West of Scotland will be hosting Dare Serious at the Glasgow Science Centre with free accommodation available upon request

2008 Events

Important dates 2008

Back to where Dare is...

Top of page