Educational Games Should Explore Complexity Rather Than Simplify It


Educators are increasingly using collaborative puzzle games in an academic context, says Rachel Donley, an escape room designer and Digital Media Ph.D. candidate. However, these games often oversimplify complex topics rather than acting as a jumping-off point to explore them further.

Improving Educational Escape Games

  • Donley, who has worked on escape room events for up to 2,000 people, said the guiding mission of "making with meaning" drew her to the digital media program at Georgia Tech.
     
  • When done correctly, educational games can help students explore difficult topics in a safer space, practice critical thinking, and challenge assumptions in a less intimidating environment.
     
  • To make them more effective, Donley suggests incorporating expert involvement to prevent a surface-level understanding of the issue and reflective elements to continue real-world learning beyond the confines of the game. 
     


Theory in Action: Donley worked with fellow Ph.D. candidate Allie Teixeira Riggs, an expert in queer archival design methods, on a puzzle game called Red [Redacted] Theater. The game, funded by the GVU Center at Georgia Tech, uses multi-layered puzzles to challenge participants’ conventional understanding of history and introduce concepts around queer history and queer archival methods. Donley said working with Riggs on the project and “experiencing that balance of designer and topic expert first-hand” helped develop and solidify her ideas around educational games. 
 

Rachel Donley

Rachel Donley

Escape Games and Leadership Learning

  • When Donley joined The Division of Student Life's Leadership Education and Development (LEAD) program as a student coach, she saw similarities between escape rooms and leadership coaching in the way that both nudge people to find the answer themselves rather than giving explicit directions or advice. 
     
  • She worked with LEAD coordinator Kyle Smith and his team to prototype an escape game to help players practice observing, listening, and identifying underlying challenges that people may be experiencing beyond what they say on the surface.  
     
  • The game presents players with a scenario, but exploration and puzzle-solving soon reveal that what they were told at the beginning is not the full picture.

"It's about taking what appears simple and recognizing all the complexity underneath that may be obscured or erased. There's a recurring theme of more than meets the eye." 
 

Smith, right, and the team at LEAD playing Donley's leadership escape game.

Smith, right, and the team at LEAD playing Donley's leadership escape game.

Why is this important?

"There are so many complex topics, and the internet gives us access to so much information and awareness of everything going on globally. It's a lot to process," Donley said. "It can be easier to lean into the simple narratives we get, but then we miss out on underlying truths and other perspectives."  

For example, she explained, when new students enter university, it can be easy to absorb information from experts or in an academic setting without questioning it.  

"But to engage effectively in a community or organization, it's crucial to understand the structures shaping what we see and understand, especially to become a leader who includes more voices," Donley said.

"There's complexity everywhere. If we don't practice finding, acknowledging, and critically examining it, we might feel overwhelmed or ignore it completely, overlooking the need or possibilities for change."