Which Narrations for Persuasive Technologies? Habits and Procedures in Ayiti: The Cost of Life

Ayiti: The Cost of Life is a very successful edutainment game pursuing persuasive aims through an unusually high level of difficulty. Analyzing this game, comprehending its unfolding meaning-making processes and describing its persuasive effectiveness is a challenging task1. To achieve it, it will be necessary to discuss how semiotics, ludology and procedural criticism intend narrativity in relation to games. A novel approach, based on Peirce’s notion of habit, will be used to overcome some analytical shortcomings of current theories. Three of the habits emerging from Ayiti’s narrative unfolding will be more detailedly discussed in order to finally describe its didactic, persuasive functioning.

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