Instructional design lessons technical communicators can learn from games

Why does it take hours for our users to build up their confidence to approach our products, try to install or use them, consult the manuals in frustration, and finally ask the person down the hall for help? In contrast why do players of arcade, video and computer games seem to approach the games without fear, eagerly exploring and learning as they go? Our research examines the way interface design for applications influences motivation, training, performance, and error correction. In this paper and presentation, we attempt to lay the ground work for additional research by defining the instructional methods used in games and by surveying the literature related to the design of game and business applications.