What is gamification
Gamification (integration of game mechanics) is a technique where game elements are applied in non-game contexts — such as education, business, advertising, user interfaces, services, and messengers. The goal is to make interactions more engaging, increase user involvement, and encourage specific actions.
Instead of direct rewards, gamification offers game-like incentives: completing tasks feels like progressing through levels. This helps users stay in the system longer and enjoy the experience—even when the task itself is routine.
Examples of use
- Education: courses with levels, points, and trophies
- Business: rewards for KPIs, internal rankings, team competitions
- Marketing: loyalty programs with bonuses
- Interfaces: progress indicators (e.g., profile completion bars)
- Apps: fitness, finance, habit trackers with gamified scenarios.
Elements of gamification
- Points, scores, and virtual currencies
- Levels and progress bars
- Tasks, challenges, missions
- Achievements, badges, rewards
- Leaderboards and competitions
- Intrinsic motivation: a sense of progress, growth, recognition.
Gamification in Telegram
Telegram is widely used for creating gamified and semi-gamified experiences, especially through bots and mini-apps. For example, Telegram’s official documentation describes an HTML5 gaming platform that can be integrated via bots.
Examples:
- Quizzes with points and levels
- Trivia games with rewards and leaderboards
- Gamified onboarding scenarios in chatbots
- Loyalty programs based on user activity
- Challenges with participation requirements.
One of the most well-known gaming bots is @gamee, a platform with dozens of games and leaderboards. Gamification is also integrated through third-party tools such as ChatPlace and Combot, which offer point systems, rankings, and motivational features.
Developers can use Web Apps and the Bot API to implement gamification—from simple “next” buttons to full systems of achievements and visual progress.
Why gamification works
Gamification taps into fundamental psychological drivers: the desire for victory, progress, and recognition. Even within Telegram’s minimal interface, these principles help capture attention, stimulate engagement, and create a stronger bond between user and product.
Telegram is increasingly a platform for large-scale gaming projects. For example, the game Hamster Kombat attracted over 300 million users, showcasing Telegram’s potential as a gamification environment. More on that can be found in this Wired article.
