How Coachella’s gamification and augmented reality is like a real life video game

The festival also tapped into Fortnite, the video game that is playing music from the artists performing at Coachella on its radio feature and is also allowing players to customise their avatars with special costumes. — The Press-Enterprise/TNS

ANAHEIM: Going to festivals comes with a set of expectations. Attendees typically undergo a series of tasks such as securing a place to stay for the weekend, getting through tedious traffic, navigating a festival map, and staying hydrated and well-fed for energy and stamina. Those tasks are part of the experience for fans attending the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, but they have more in common with an open world video game than attendees may realise.

This year while major musical acts such as Harry Styles, Billie Eilish and The Weeknd perform for the hundreds of thousands of people expected to attend, the festival will be experimenting with augmented reality and gamification. Gamification refers to gameplay being applied to activities outside of the game space and can be used as a strategy to increase engagement among participants.