contributed articles

Doi: 10.1145/1378704.1378719

Data generated as a side effect of game play also solves computational problems and trains AI algorithms.

By Luis Von ahn anD LauRa DaBBish
Designing
Games With
a Purpose

MANy TASKS ARE trivial for humans but continue to challenge even the most sophisticated computer programs. Traditional computational approaches to solving such problems focus on improving artificial-intelligence algorithms. Here, we advocate a different approach: the constructive channeling of human brainpower through computer games. Toward this goal, we present general design principles for the development and evaluation of a class of games we call “games with a purpose,” or GWAPs, in which people, as a side effect of playing, perform tasks computers are unable to perform.

The Entertainment Software Association (www. theesa.com/facts/gamer_data.php) has reported that more than 200 million hours are spent each day playing computer and video games in the U.S. Indeed, by age 21, the average American has spent more than 10,000 hours playing such games¹⁵—equivalent to five years of working a full-time job 40 hours per week.

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