The Means of an End: Applying the Peak-End Theory to Game-Based Learning Design

This study examines whether the ending of a game-based learning experience can shape learner motivation and game experience, applying the Peak-End Theory from psychology to serious game design. The authors built a prototype called Complex Space Adventure, which teaches complex numbers to STEM students, and created two versions differing only in their final sequence: an abrupt two-sentence closing (control) and a narratively enriched farewell featuring a medal reveal, confetti, and a character sign-off (experimental). After excluding participants who did not finish the game, 39 students remained (19 with the extended ending, 20 with the base ending), and they completed a shortened motivation instrument aligned with Keller's ARCS model alongside four subscales of the Game Experience Questionnaire.

The extended-ending group reported higher scores across all four ARCS dimensions (Attention, Relevance, Confidence, Satisfaction) and all measured GEQ subscales, with Mann-Whitney U tests indicating significance at the 0.05 level for ARCS and at the 0.01 level for GEQ measures. Effect sizes ranged from medium to large, with the largest difference appearing in reduced negative affect. Because the two versions differed only in the ending, the authors attribute these differences to retrospective memory evaluation rather than to changes in actual learning or gameplay.

The authors acknowledge substantial limitations: a small, non-random sample, unmeasured demographic mediators, and a single game context. They nonetheless argue that deliberate ending design is a low-cost lever for enhancing learner motivation and self-efficacy, and they propose follow-up work on repeated-play games and on the "peak" component of the theory.