ABSTRACT
The fundamental goal of this research is to elucidate the important characteristics of current serious games, thus providing a tool through which future research can examine the impact of such games and ultimately contribute to their development. Understanding the true impact of serious game play requires fi rst an understanding of what serious games are. The present research lays the foundation for such an understanding by developing a classifi cation system of all serious games based on a dataset of over 600 serious games. This classifi cation system could potentially contribute to rigorous empirical investigations of serious games, such as those that are reviewed in part II of this book, by presenting a framework within which such games could be analyzed systematically. By considering the dimensions and categories of serious games offered here, such research would be better positioned to suggest promising directions for the development of this valuable genre of digital games.
