Library escape: User-centered design of an information literacy game

The number of digital games for educational purposes has grown rapidly, and there is a potential for libraries to utilize them in information literacy (IL) education. Scholars have called for rigor in both the educational effectiveness and game-play experience in educational game design. One way to achieve this is to adopt a user-centered approach. Therefore, this article describes the user-centered design process of an IL game that actively involved potential users. A participatory design workshop and subsequent user evaluation yielded low- and high-fidelity prototypes. Insights on the complexities of educational game design were uncovered, including being accommodating yet pragmatic toward user input, keeping the balance between enjoyment and learning, and being guided yet flexible in using theoretical frameworks. Future directions for this IL game and general educational game design are also discussed.