The problem with making everything a game
Why your product probably doesn’t need gamification
Maybe you’re impressed by how Duolingo hooks people with its gamification features, who isn’t?
Maybe you want to spice things up.
Or maybe you’re facing an engagement problem and hoping that a few fun additions to your product will help.
Are they really, though?
Gamification should fit the nature of the product
The mechanism should fit the emotion your product already evokes. Streaks or progress tracking make a lot of sense for habits tied to long term growth, like fitness or learning.
That’s why streaks work perfectly for Duolingo. Similarly, Headspace uses streaks because the feeling of consistency is a huge motivation for its users.
But in gaming or entertainment, a streak can backfire. I know how contradictory it sounds, gamification not working in gaming?
The truth is, if you apply the same streak mechanism as Duolingo’s to a game, it just reminds players how much time they’ve sunk, not how much progress they’ve made.
And that hits differently.
That’s not time invested in personal growth, it feels like time wasted. No one wants to see “Day 426” in a mobile game reminding them of hours spent grinding.
Don’t just copy the cosmetics, understand the motivations behind the mechanism
Badges, levels, and animations aren’t the point. They’re just wrappers for deeper psychology.
People don’t engage because of pretty badges, they engage because the system satisfies something real: progress, status, competence, belonging.
Strava’s leaderboards and kudos work because athletes are both competitive and social. Remove the visuals and the motivation still stands.
On the other hand, when a corporate learning platform or shopping app copies those visuals without the underlying community or mastery loop, the badges feel meaningless.
Ask yourself: “What human need does this mechanism serve in our context?”
Mastery. Belonging. Competition. Feedback. Consistency.
It shouldn’t feel like a gimmick or a patch
If users wouldn’t care if you removed it, it probably shouldn’t exist. Gamification can’t fix a weak core experience.
Take LinkedIn. Endorsements, profile badges, and “top voice” tags might look engaging, but they rarely change how people actually use the product. They’re decorative, not motivational.
Gamification works only when the reward is real. You can’t fake motivation.