I found an interesting article by Mark Nelson at http://www.kmjn.org/notes/soviet_gamification.html that describes how Lenin was using points, rewards, and badges to motivate workers back in 1917. In a parallel to recent criticisms of gamification, opponents of Lenin complained that the rewards were just another form of capitalism instead of communism. In response, Lenin emphasized that “socialist competition” really was supposed to be about real engagement. Points were not payment, but just encouragement and recognition for engaged users workers, providing some indication and acknowledgment of progress, along with a fun and comradely way to guide workers towards where they should be going next, all while building community.

Everything old is new again? What can we learn from these older gamification attempts?