INDENTRO Summary



Summary of the Integral-Developmental Trojan Horse INDENTRO video game design framework

Based on my Integral Methodological Pluralism (IMP) research, in order to intentionally design games for catalyzing and integrating different kinds of human development – integrating and balancing this goal with the higher level of entertainment (fun) and market value (popularity) characteristic of best-selling video games - game designers would need to take into account a series of complementary and interdependent aspects and considerations, such as:

1. Continuous improvement of existent and new video game design models, incorporating emergent technological tools and interfaces with player-customized underlying developmental practices based on integral developmental frameworks. These improvements will be allied with empirical tests, observations and categorizations (based on AQAL, Integral Life Practice and Integral Play) of different educational and developmental types of learning through various current and new video game research and applications.
   
2. Based on Integral Theory applications (Psychology, Education Spirituality) and the AQAL framework, it will be necessary for video games to provide a skillful and timely balance of awareness, support, and challenge in order to facilitate integration, growth, and transformation of five fundamental aspects of players’ specific profiles and AQAL constellations (as much as possible), as related to:
   

   AQAL MODEL: Leves, Lines, States, Types and Quadrants

   
   
   • Levels of Development: Catalyzing growth in players in terms of horizontal and vertical types of development in different lines of intelligence through both individual (single-player) and collective (multi-player and MMO) applications.
     
   • Lines of Multiple Intelligences, divided in:
     
     • Cognitive line
     • Self-related lines
     • Talents (or gifts) lines
       Cross-training between two or more lines of intelligence based on transformative practices such as the Integral Life Practice (ILP) framework.
       Catalyzing developmental growth and integration among different lines of intelligence takes here a fundamental role, since it can leverage various kinds of growth already happening through videogames.
       
   • States of Consciousness, including exploring and leveraging different inner states of consciousness, moods, and emotional tones.
     It also includes training positive, healthy and growth-inducing altered states of consciousness and State-Stage training (e.g.: flow, joy, awe, love, relaxation, meditation, mindfulness, creativity, contemplation, peek experiences).
     
   • Types or Typologies, including:
     
     • Genres (masculine vs. feminine; yin vs. yang)
     • Styles (aggressive vs. passive; individualistic vs. communitarian; leader vs. follower; thinker vs. feeler)
     • Personality types (e.g., Enneagram, Myers-Briggs).
       
   • Quadrants or the "four basic dimensions of reality", including:
     
     • Subjective (psychological, emotional, intellectual, spiritual) - Upper Left (UL)
     • Inter-subjective (relationships, worldviews, cultures and sub-cultures) - Lower Left (LL)
     • Objective (physical body, behaviors) - Upper Right (UR)
     • Inter-objective (systemic, social, economical, institutional, educational) aspects - Lower Right (LR)
       Ideally, players would benefit by “touching bases” with basic aspects of those four dimensions (as much as possible), experiencing different kinds of growth and integration within each dimension and among all of them, since their intrinsic complementarity and interdependence.
       
3. Appplication of strategic and skilfull means of incorporating subtle and underlying developmental messages and practices into the core structure of integral-developmental video games - Trojan Horse Approach.
   

   Trojan Horse Approach: Subtle and underlying developmental practices embedded in video game design.

4. Always keep in mind the basic purposes of entertainment, marketing, and economical variables characteristic of successful video games.
   
5. Incorporation of initial or “on the go” personal assessments based on the five main aspects of AQAL. In addition, customization and continuous re-adaptation of video games according to developmental changes, following an ongoing process of adaptation and learning (feedback loops, autopoiesis) based on advanced DDA (dynamic difficulty adjustments) interfaces.
6. Integration of the core developmental modules of Integral Life Practice (ILP) framework into the structural design of integral-developmental video games (as much as possible), including auxiliary practices based on game audience and goals.
   
   
7. Design video games that can simultaneously (and specifically) adapt to different types, maturity levels and genres of players, providing messages and practices that could be interpreted and acted upon in different ways by various Play Selves in terms of their own developmental levels of consciousness and worldviews, based on the Integral Play framework.
   
8. Design video games based on their intrinsic, specific (and exclusive) game mechanics, structures and languages, instead of only borrowing or importing design concepts from other media.
   
9. Facilitate awareness, transference and applications of various types of skills from “virtual” to “real” life, and vice-versa.