Reality Is Broken

Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World

By: Jane McGonigal

Narrated by: Julia Whelan

Length: 13 hrs and 23 mins

Publisher's summary

In today’s society, games are fulfilling real human needs in ways that reality is not. Hundreds of millions of people globally — 174 million in the United States alone — regularly inhabit game worlds because they provide the rewards, stimulating challenges, and epic victories that are so often lacking in the real world. Instead of futile handwringing about this exodus from reality, world-renowned game designer Jane McGonigal argues that we need to figure out how to make the real world—our homes, our businesses and our communities—engage us in the way that games do.

Drawing on positive psychology and cognitive science, McGonigal reveals how game designers have hit on core truths about what makes us happy, from social connection to having satisfying work to do. Game designers intuitively understand how to optimize human experience. Reality is Broken shows that games can teach us essential lessons about mass collaboration, creating emotional incentives, and increasing engagement that will be relevant to everyone.

©2011 Jane McGonigal (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

great treatise on gamification!

I really liked this book. just a few gripes about how capitalism and reality seem to be issues "solved" by gamification rather than gamified themselves. otherwise it lays out an interesting framework for using games to solve world problems and make them fun.

Excellent way to learn about games

Would you listen to Reality Is Broken again? Why?

Yes. It has some great information, statistics, and numbers on the effect of video games. Very informative.

Who was your favorite character and why?

No particular character in this book.

What about Julia Whelan’s performance did you like?

Very clear. So much so, that I could listen to this in 3x narration speed and understand everything.

If you could give Reality Is Broken a new subtitle, what would it be?

The positive effect of games on our society.

Read a Summary Instead

I agree with a lot of other reviewers on the content of this book. Though it presents some interesting ideas, the delivery is way too verbose and somewhat cringey at times. I recommend reading a summary of the book’s main points instead.

Very thought provoking

5 out of 5 stars. Jane McGonigal does a fantastic presentation of a very thought provoking subject. Julia Whelan did a wonderful job on the narration as well. (So much so that it was kind of a jolt when I watched the clip of Jane on the Colbert report and she didn't sound like Julia!) One drawback is I had to buy a Kindle copy after listening because I wanted to check out all of the links that are mentioned. ^_^

Powerful self help and community building book

this book is valuable as a self improvement book, community building guide, and customer interaction guide. I'm not a 'gamer' but this book is a must read for anyone.

Interesting insights

Interesting insights about Games and Games Design,
I do not agree with the info presented, but being exposed to many thoughts and ideas abouts games from the authors experience and point of views, even though it could be subjective, is worth the read. Learned so much from this book. Recommended.

Amazing and inspiring

This book was recommended to me by a friend in the gaming industry who knew I wanted to create games for social good. It's probably the best book I'll ever read on this subject. But more, this book is better than any self help book ever written. There's so much to apply to your personal life--gaming happiness hacks--that McGonigal has probably saved me money I'd have spent trying to find a bit of joy.

HIGHLY recommended for anyone who is human.

Perfectly captures the depth of engagement games

Having been around computers and games since I was 2, and having played online games from the start when I was 13, I can say that Jane McGonigal's description of the online world today's kids are growing up with is extremely accurate. When I sat down to write what soft skills I've picked up from all my years playing online games, I came up with a rather exhaustive list. It's astounding, regardless of the genre played (FPS, like Halo, MMOs like World of Warcraft).

Why do we find games so engaging, so engrossing? Many schools, businesses and the like are blaming 'addiction' to games for people tuning out. It goes far, far beyond simple 'addiction' (though problems do exist). Jane goes to great lengths to EXPLAIN the concepts of engagement this 'video game addiction' really consists of - and that schools, businesses and the greater community can and SHOULD learn from such an efficient, accessible use of these concepts to improve the quality of life for everyone in society.

This woman will change the world

Incredibly insightful book about the games culture and why it's so engrossing. Don't be scared off by the length of the book. Totally worth the time.

She outlines specifically what games give us and how we can use that in reality.

I like how in the second half of the book, Ms. McGonigal focuses on how games can be used to improve our lives and to address some of the larger problems affecting our world. Her research will make a huge difference in our world if we take it and run with her ideas.

Great job, and as a bonus, it's fun to listen to!

Gamers Interact

Just got the audio book, but in one word I would have to call it interesting. Being a gamer I related to a lot of segments Jane McGonigal wrote about. I first found out about the book, by watching her interview on G4 TV's show "Attack Of The Show". I myself had to get in front of an audience once, to talk about the positive interaction that games have for people. I hope this small review helps your decision making on buying this audio book. By the way Jane, good job with everything.