Abstract:

The i-Game EU project (https://igameproject.eu/) introduces a novel, semi-automated approach to the co-creation of Serious (Applied) Games across the cultural and educational sectors, with a special focus on formal and non-formal learning environments. Educational institutions increasingly seek digital experiences that stimulate engagement, inclusivity, and participatory learning. To respond to this need, i-Game develops a platform that empowers diverse stakeholders like curators, educators, students, designers, technologists, and community members, to collaboratively shape the conceptual, narrative, and aesthetic foundations of educational Serious Games.

At the core of the project lies an AI-supported co-creation protocol structured in four iterative phases:
1. Kick-off & Alignment: Stakeholders collectively define goals, constraints, audiences, learning outcomes, and motivational principles. This phase ensures a shared vision grounded in positive psychology and community-building dynamics.
2. Game Design: Through guided workflows and semi-automated templates, contributors co-design the game’s mechanics, progression, challenges, rewards, and interaction patterns. The platform assists non-experts by suggesting structures aligned with established design heuristics and educational frameworks.
3. Storytelling: Stakeholders collaboratively build the narrative arc, characters, roles, tone, objects, and experiential flow. AI-assisted prompts help translate domain knowledge into meaningful stories that foster engagement and learning.
4. Aesthetics: The final phase focuses on the art direction, visual identity, UI considerations, accessibility standards, and overall atmosphere. The platform proposes aesthetic references while allowing stakeholders to negotiate style requirements that respect heritage materials and educational relevance.

Together, these phases allow contributors with different backgrounds, abilities and levels of expertise to participate meaningfully in design decisions. The platform automatically generates intermediate outputs such as Game Design Documents (GDDs) which can later be refined by professional developers in order to develop the games.

Pilot implementations in European institutions from different countries show that this model not only accelerates the production of Serious Games but also strengthens collaborative creativity, facilitates knowledge transfer, and expands opportunities for community participation. By lowering technical barriers, i-Game enables cultural and educational institutions to experiment with interactive digital experiences that support education, communication, skill development, and enriched learning.

Ultimately, the i-Game platform offers a scalable, replicable model for participatory Serious Game design, bridging education, and digital innovation while ensuring that creativity and community remain at the centre of the process.

Keywords:

Education, Community, Serious Games, Cocreation.