Mock Games: A New Genre of Pervasive Play

In this paper we identify and characterize, in theory and by design example, a new genre of pervasive play for tweens that lies on the border between play and game, called mock games. The objective is to design digital support for more or less structured playfulness among preteen children, primarily girls, in a way that emphasizes humor, friendly battle and identity construction. The method used is a combination of a review of a number of theories of games and play and a field study into the social reality of children’s playful activities. Based on these two investigations we characterize mock games as a genre and show that it is not covered well by any one of the reviewed theories, taking into account both social and technical aspects. Then we present a design example of such a system, DARE! We conclude by discussing ethical issues and set goals for future research.