Tuesday, November 27, 2012

SCVNGR


SCVNGR


SCVNGR is an smartphone app available on both iPhone and Android. It was originally compared to Foursquare since both apps allow for users to check into locations, earning badges and the chance to unlock rewards. However, it's purpose is to add a game layer to the real world. It does this through a location based game that allows you to not only check into places but it offers "treks" and "challenges" that could practically make you explore a city. 

Challenges, treks and rewards are some new words to know to better navigate all that SCVNGR has to offer. Challenges are a set of tasks to accomplish at a location. Some of these challenges include checking in, commenting and take a picture and bumping phone, which means you and a friend would have had to check in together in order to accomplish this task. Treks take challenges a step further by making scavenger hunts that incorporate many different locations and their challenges. Finally when either completing a challenge or trek, participating businesses with anything from coupons to signature items. 

The reason I even learned of SCVNGR is because of the SUNY Passport program set to launch soon. SUNY takes SCVNGR's purpose in a different direction by applying it to higher education purposes, allowing for the possibility for professors to design their own treks, to students being able to discover what SUNY campus' have to offer through challenges. As soon as i heard about the app I was curious to see how it worked and so I downloaded it and I would highly recommend others do the same. It showed me New York City through different eyes, you learn while exploring the real world. What could be more fun?


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