Episode 11: Metagaming and Knowledge Management

Unlocking Games

Instead of examining one game in detail, this week the broader concept of metagaming caught our attention. From Dungeons & Dragons to Tekken to League of Legends, tons of games can be played at a meta level. There’s so much information about games out there, and whether you take it into account can make or break your play style. It’s not always looked at kindly, but metagaming is a powerful tool. Players of card games like Netrunner have built elaborate lists of potential card combinations, and pro League of Legends players can craft complex strategies around their opponents’ known play styles. Beyond games, this has huge implications for communities of practice and knowledge management. How can companies and organizations capture the informal knowledge built up around their business processes? We found some direct tips they can take from metagaming.

Show Notes & Links

• Toward a Topology of Metagames (Proceedings of the Australasian Computer Science Week Multiconference)
• Game Design Fundamentals, by Katie TekinbaÅŸ and Eric Zimmerman
• All Work, All Play (trailer)
• Balancing Act: How to Capture Knowledge Without Killing It (Harvard Business Review)
• Dan Pink’s TED Talk, The Puzzle of Motivation

Other games mentioned in this episode

• Tekken 3
• Final Fantasy 7
• Dungeons & Dragons
• League of Legends
• Magic: The Gathering
• Hearthstone
• Netrunner
• Shadowrun
• Smash Brothers
• Halo