{"id":1458,"date":"2026-03-25T16:12:27","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T16:12:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/masterdesign.ubertconcepts.nl\/livingatlas\/?p=1458"},"modified":"2026-03-25T18:40:44","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T18:40:44","slug":"playtests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/masterdesign.ubertconcepts.nl\/livingatlas\/index.php\/2026\/03\/25\/playtests\/","title":{"rendered":"Playtests"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n
\"\"
The board<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The players<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The feedback<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Designing confusion as method<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Reflections from playtesting \u201cLiving Without Letters\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over the past months, Living Without Letters<\/em> has been iteratively tested with graduate students, colleagues, partners from the Foundation for Reading and Writing, members of the Hero Guild, and in consultation with board game expert Diewertje Schuur.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These playtests are not evaluative moments in a traditional sense. Rather, they function as research-through-design situations in which the game operates as a boundary object<\/em>\u2014a shared artefact through which different stakeholders negotiate meaning, experience, and perspective (Binder et al., 2011; Star & Griesemer, 1989).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What emerges in these sessions is not simply feedback on a game, but insight into how systems of literacy\u2014and exclusion\u2014are experienced, interpreted, and reproduced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Confusion as designed friction<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A recurring response across sessions was striking in its consistency:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t understand anything\u2026 and that\u2019s exactly the point.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Participants described feelings of disorientation, dependency, and loss of control. These are not unintended side effects, but deliberate design choices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Drawing from participatory and experiential design traditions (Akama, 2015; Sanders & Stappers, 2008), the game aims to make systemic exclusion feelable, rather than explainable. In this sense, confusion operates as a form of designed friction<\/em>\u2014a mechanism that interrupts habitual understanding and opens space for reflection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, the playtests revealed an important boundary condition. When friction is no longer interpretable\u2014through unclear audio, inconsistent rules, or overwhelming visual input\u2014it shifts from meaningful experience to noise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This positions confusion not as a binary (present\/absent), but as something that requires continuous calibration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Agency within unequal systems<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another recurring tension concerned the balance between control and chance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some players experienced the game as overly dependent on randomness:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

progress shaped by \u201clucky\u201d cards<\/p>\n\n\n\n

limited influence over outcomes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others recognised this as a reflection of lived reality:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cReal life isn\u2019t equal\u2026 so do the chances have to be?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This tension aligns with insights from New Literacy Studies, where literacy is understood not as an individual skill, but as a socially situated practice shaped by power, access, and institutional structures (Barton & Hamilton, 1998).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The design question that emerges is not whether the game should be \u201cfair,\u201d but how it can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

make structural inequality visible<\/p>\n\n\n\n

create meaningful trade-offs (e.g. time vs. money vs. help)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

allow players to experience<\/em> constrained agency<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Audio as an inclusive\u2014but unstable\u2014medium<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Audio plays a central role in the game, deliberately replacing written instructions to reduce reliance on text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This aligns with the broader design intention to explore alternative literacies and modalities, moving beyond text as the dominant carrier of meaning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Feedback, however, revealed a duality in how audio is experienced:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

appreciated for its inclusivity and diversity (multiple voices, accents)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

criticised for clarity, pacing, and navigability<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interestingly, what some perceived as a barrier, others recognised as essential:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe frustration made me realise what this experience is like.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This reflects a core tension in the project:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Audio is both a bridge away from text-dependency and a site where new forms of exclusion can emerge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The challenge is therefore not optimisation towards clarity alone, but intentional design of accessibility, variation, and interpretability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Materiality and the aesthetics of overload<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Participants consistently described the game as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

engaging and creative<\/p>\n\n\n\n

visually rich and \u201ccheerful\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

supported by a strong narrative structure<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, feedback pointed to moments of overload:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

dense visual compositions<\/p>\n\n\n\n

unclear relationships between board, cards, and website<\/p>\n\n\n\n

residual reliance on text in a text-critical system<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From a design perspective, this raises an important question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To what extent should complexity be reduced\u2014and to what extent should it remain as a reflection of bureaucratic reality?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here, the game resonates with the notion of design things<\/em> (Binder et al., 2011):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

not as finished objects, but as assemblies of materials, interactions, and interpretations that remain open to negotiation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The game master as relational interface<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

An important insight from the Hero Guild playtest was the role of the game master.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rather than functioning purely as facilitator, this role becomes a relational interface:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

mediating between system and player<\/p>\n\n\n\n

embodying institutional support structures<\/p>\n\n\n\n

experiencing the challenges of assisting someone navigating inaccessible systems<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This extends the game beyond individual experience toward relational understanding, aligning with participatory design\u2019s emphasis on co-creation and situated interaction (Ehn, 2008).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From empathy to action<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Across sessions, one outcome was consistently articulated:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy empathy for this group has grown exponentially.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI now feel what low literacy might be like.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The game succeeds in shifting understanding from cognitive awareness to embodied experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, this also surfaced a critical question:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe problem is clear now\u2026 but what\u2019s next?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This marks a transition from experience to implication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the game functions as a boundary object, then its value lies not only in the experience it creates, but in how it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • informs design practices<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • influences policy thinking<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • reshapes everyday interactions with systems and services<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Calibrating friction<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    These playtests reaffirm a central position in this research:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Living Without Letters<\/em> is not designed for seamlessness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It is designed to stage friction. But friction is not inherently meaningful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    It requires careful tuning:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    too little \u2192 the experience loses depth<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    too much \u2192 the experience becomes inaccessible in unintended ways<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The ongoing iterations therefore focus not on removing difficulty, but on aligning it with purpose\u2014so that confusion becomes insight, and frustration becomes a starting point for change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    References<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    Akama, Y. (2015). Being awake to Ma: Designing in between-ness as a way of becoming with<\/em>. CoDesign, 11(3\u20134), 262\u2013274.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Barton, D., & Hamilton, M. (1998). Local literacies: Reading and writing in one community<\/em>. Routledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Binder, T., Brandt, E., Ehn, P., & Halse, J. (2011). Design Things<\/em>. MIT Press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Ehn, P. (2008). Participation in design things.<\/em> Proceedings of the Tenth Anniversary Conference on Participatory Design.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Sanders, E. B.-N., & Stappers, P. J. (2008). Co-creation and the new landscapes of design<\/em>. CoDesign, 4(1), 5\u201318.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Star, S. L., & Griesemer, J. R. (1989). Institutional ecology, \u2018translations\u2019 and boundary objects<\/em>. Social Studies of Science, 19(3), 387\u2013420.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n\n\n\n

    When values become unstable<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    Interpreting the research hexagons<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Alongside the playtests, the values hexagon<\/strong> was introduced as a way to reflect on what happens during the game. Players were asked to map their experience across six axes: accessibility, dignity & equality, co-creation & participation, empathy & trust, social impact, and clarity & transparency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    What became immediately visible was not just variation in outcomes\u2014but variation in interpretation<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Without prior explanation, participants consistently assigned different meanings to the same values. What one player considered \u201caccessible,\u201d another experienced as exclusionary. What felt like \u201cco-creation\u201d in one group was interpreted as dependency or even inequality in another.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    This is also visible in the spread of the scores across sessions, where the same round could produce radically different value distributions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Reflecting reality, not measuring it<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    At first glance, this could be seen as a lack of clarity in the tool.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    However, in relation to the playtest feedback, it reveals something more fundamental.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Throughout the sessions, participants expressed tensions such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • confusion that was meaningful for some, but overwhelming for others<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • randomness that felt unfair, yet recognisable as \u201creal life\u201d<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • audio that was inclusive in intent, but exclusionary in execution<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      These are not contradictions to be resolved\u2014they are co-existing realities<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      The values hexagon does not produce a single \u201ctruth\u201d about the game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Instead, it surfaces how values are situated, negotiated, and experienced differently depending on position, expectation, and interpretation<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      This resonates with the framing of literacy as a social practice (Barton & Hamilton, 1998):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      just as literacy is not neutral or universal, neither are the values through which we assess systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Misalignment as insight<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      The divergence in interpretations becomes particularly meaningful when read alongside the playtest feedback.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      For example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • High scores on clarity<\/em> in one group contrast with feedback describing unclear rules and overwhelming information<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Experiences of co-creation<\/em> sit alongside frustrations about unequal power in help cards<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Strong feelings of empathy<\/em> coexist with moments of disengagement caused by audio or pacing<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Rather than invalidating each other, these differences point to value misalignment<\/strong>\u2014a condition that mirrors real-world systems, where policies, services, and experiences are rarely aligned across stakeholders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        In this sense, the hexagon does not function as an evaluative tool, but as a diagnostic lens<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        it reveals where values are contested, invisible, or unevenly distributed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Designing for multiple readings<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        An unexpected but significant insight is that the lack of explanation of the hexagon may actually be essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        By leaving the values open to interpretation:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • participants project their own frameworks and assumptions<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • hidden norms and expectations become visible<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • discussions shift from \u201cwhat is correct\u201d to \u201cwhy do we see this differently?\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          This aligns with the role of the game as a boundary object:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          not to stabilise meaning, but to enable multiple, sometimes conflicting, interpretations to coexist and be discussed<\/strong> (Star & Griesemer, 1989).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          From experience to conversation<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

          Where the gameplay creates an embodied experience of exclusion,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          the hexagon extends this into collective reflection<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

          It creates a space where participants can:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n
          • compare interpretations<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • articulate tensions<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • question taken-for-granted assumptions about clarity, fairness, and accessibility<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

            In doing so, it shifts the outcome of the game from individual empathy<\/em> to shared inquiry<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Calibrating not just the game, but the lens<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

            The introduction of the values hexagon adds another layer to the earlier insight on calibration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            Not only does the game require tuning\u2014<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            so does the way we interpret it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            The variability in outcomes is not noise to be reduced,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

            but a signal to be read:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

              \n
            • and meaning is never singular.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • a reflection of a world in which<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • systems are experienced differently,<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • values are unevenly distributed,<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

              <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

              Designing confusion as method Reflections from playtesting \u201cLiving Without Letters\u201d Over the past months, Living Without Letters has been iteratively tested with graduate students, colleagues, partners from the Foundation for Reading and Writing, members of the Hero Guild, and in consultation with board game expert Diewertje Schuur. These playtests are not evaluative moments in a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,5,15,16,17,18,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1458","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-movement","category-experiments","category-reflections","category-reflections-with-experts","category-reflections-with-peers","category-reflections-with-students","category-research"],"yoast_head":"\nPlaytests - Tanja Ubert - Master Design Research<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/masterdesign.ubertconcepts.nl\/livingatlas\/index.php\/2026\/03\/25\/playtests\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Playtests - Tanja Ubert - Master Design Research\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Designing confusion as method Reflections from playtesting \u201cLiving Without Letters\u201d Over the past months, Living Without Letters has been iteratively tested with graduate students, colleagues, partners from the Foundation for Reading and Writing, members of the Hero Guild, and in consultation with board game expert Diewertje Schuur. 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