When it comes to business, not too many people automatically think of gaming. Over the last decade, gamification has slowly started to change this idea. Gamification is a way for companies to sell their goods or services in a more interesting and game-centric way.
One of the best-known examples is Louis Vuitton’s mobile game, Louis The Game. The 2021 game was launched to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the brand. By simply playing the game, Louis Vuitton diehards could unlock unique gifts and experiences. Though this type of hands-on gamification hasn’t quite taken off across the board, it’s still popular. In fact, Louis Vuitton is planning a secondary NFT-centric release.
But what about games that focus on business skills? These titles aren’t designed for consumers or for sales purposes. Instead, these games tend to appeal to businesspeople simply because of the mental challenges involved. That’s right—some games can even help improve entrepreneurial thinking.
Let’s take a closer look at the games that go hand-in-hand with business thinking and practices.
Blackjack
When it comes to traditional card games, blackjack stands out as the most business-adjacent. Much of the correlation comes down to hard numbers and probabilities. Unlike other card games, blackjack has a lower house edge. Players usually weight the probability of the dealer hitting blackjack or other players, which will inform their own move. Many entrepreneurs make decisions based on hard data like this.
On top of the emphasis on stats, blackjack also includes a few extra deals. For example, some platforms offer blackjack insurance, which helps protect the player against potential losses. In case you’re new to 21, standard blackjack insurance rules state that players must stake half their bet to protect against the dealer hitting a natural blackjack. Insurance is yet another topic that businesspeople are all too familiar with.
Sports Management Sims
There’s nothing quite like a management simulation to let us get into the nitty-gritty of our favorite sports. In fact, games like Football Manager have been around for decades to give hardcore fans a truly inside look at their favorite leagues, players, and teams. But to succeed in a sports management sim, more than a bit of business sense is required.
First, a player needs to know the ins and outs of the league they’re competing in—from salary caps to NIL policies. Second, they need to know the strengths and weaknesses of players and, in some cases, coaches, too. Third, they must piece together all types of information in order to make smart and timely decisions. Even a new entrepreneur likely understands these types of demands—regardless of their industry.
City Builders
Speaking of balancing a myriad of information, that brings us to city builders. Just like the title suggests, these games require players to create a well-balanced and functional city. The magic is in figuring out how to meet the diverse needs of each city. Some games, like Townscaper, are more like sandbox titles that let you build freely.
But others, like Aven Colony and Banished, require detailed work and long-term planning. The former is a sci-fi alien settler game that features a myriad of unpredictable circumstances, while the latter is a more traditional medieval city-building sim with a few fantastical elements thrown in. To succeed in either, players need a bit of competitive business savvy and vision.
RTS
Real-time strategy games are similar to city builders in that it’s about amassing power. But rather than craft a city that will endure millennia, RTS games usually focus on building and battling armies. Franchises like Age of Empires and Starcraft are popular examples of this genre.
Unsurprisingly, businesspeople have an edge over other players. They’re more likely to spot chinks in their arm (pun intended) and patch them up faster, all while predicting what live or NPC opponents might try next. In other words, much like the most competitive RTS players, businesspeople have a bit of hard-earned experience on their side.