🎮 What L&D can learn from gaming to engage early talent

Why onboarding needs a little more play and a lot more strategy

Let’s be honest: Most early careers inductions don’t feel like an invitation. They feel like an obligation. Day one kicks off with a barrage of information, a few awkward icebreakers, and maybe a digital learning module or two that could double as sleep aids.

But what if we rethought onboarding from the ground up not as an administrative process, but as an experience? One that actually pulls people in, builds momentum, and creates long-term motivation?

That’s what gaming does. And right now, L&D should be paying close attention.

The problem: Induction is information-heavy, motivation-light

By the time a new hire finishes week one, they’ve probably:

• Clicked through a mandatory compliance module
• Sat through hours of presentations
• Had minimal 1:1 engagement
• Retained about 10% of what they saw

Meanwhile, they’re expected to feel “integrated,” understand company culture, and be productive.

The issue isn’t just cognitive overload — it’s emotional disengagement. Early careers hires (especially Gen Z) are walking into the workforce with a different set of expectations. They want:

• Autonomy
• Purpose
• Connection
• Feedback
• Momentum

Gaming offers all of these things and does it without a single manager setting up a check-in.

Games are learning engines, here’s how they do it

Every good game onboards new players. It teaches mechanics, rules, and strategies without the player even noticing. In fact, games are often better at teaching complex systems than most corporate learning.

Here’s what they get right:

1. Progression systems

Games show you exactly where you are, how far you’ve come, and what’s next.

• XP bars, levels, skill trees — visual cues for growth.
• Application for L&D: Create visible learner journeys with milestones. Break the induction into “levels” with meaningful checkpoints and rewards.

2. Immediate feedback

In games, you know instantly if what you did worked. Failures don’t feel final, they feel like part of the process.

• Application: Move beyond the once-a-week manager check-in. Use nudges, micro-feedback tools, peer shoutouts, and AI-driven progress updates.

3. Autonomy & exploration

Games don’t force a linear path. Players choose side quests, explore options, and take risks.

• Application: Let new hires tailor parts of their onboarding. Offer optional modules, role-based branching content, or “choose your own learning journey” paths.

4. Social play

Games thrive on multiplayer dynamics — co-op modes, team quests, raids.

• Application: Build social learning into induction. Buddy systems are a start, but think broader: team-based challenges, collaborative simulations, or learning squads.

5. Challenge & reward

The balance of effort and payoff is precise. Games are hard enough to feel rewarding, but not so hard they cause paralysis.

• Application: Don’t water down tasks. Challenge new hires with real-world problems — then reward progress in visible, meaningful ways.

Practical Applications: Gaming the induction system (the smart way)

If you’re leading L&D, the point isn’t to make onboarding fun for fun’s sake. It’s to make it engaging, sticky, and aligned with your learning strategy.

Here’s how that can look in practice:

➤ Mission-based onboarding

Instead of a passive learning module, design a “mission log” where each induction milestone is a quest:

• Complete a shadowing session
• Interview a stakeholder
• Solve a mini case study
• Record a video reflection

Each mission unlocks the next and builds toward a capstone challenge.

➤ Boss battles as business challenges

Turn real onboarding goals into challenges with stakes:

• “Your team is launching a new product. Here’s the background. You have 3 days to pitch your approach to the senior lead.”
• Assign peer mentors as co-players or “NPCs” that provide insight.

➤ Points, badges & leaderboards (Done right)

Gamification gets a bad rap and often for good reason. Slapping badges on boring content isn’t innovation. But when used carefully, mechanics like:

• Streaks for consistent learning
• Hidden achievements for creative thinking
• Team-based points for collaboration
  can create momentum, pride, and visibility — all things that early careers talent crave.

🚫 What not to do: Avoid the gamification gimmicks

Gamifying onboarding isn’t about “fun.” It’s about engagement through design. Get it wrong, and you’ll trigger eye-rolls instead of enthusiasm.

Don’t:

• Add competition where it creates stress or exclusion
• Make rewards meaningless (badges that don’t connect to anything = waste)
• Prioritise novelty over purpose

Do:

• Tie all game-like elements to real business outcomes or learner growth
• Let learners opt into gamified experiences where possible
• Design for motivation, not manipulation

Why this works: A behavioural science perspective

Game mechanics work because they align with how humans are wired:

• Dopamine triggers: Progress, surprises, and wins release dopamine — creating habits.
• Autonomy & mastery: Self-determined learning and skill growth drive deep satisfaction.
• Social validation: Leaderboards, recognition, and teamwork drive engagement.

Measuring impact: What to track

If you’re going to introduce game mechanics, measure what matters. Don’t stop at engagement metrics.

Track:

• Time to productivity
• Retention in year one
• Learning pathway completion rates
• Self-reported confidence in role
• Quality of peer networks formed

The goal is not just to make onboarding better. It’s to make it work at scale and with measurable results.

How we’re applying this at MDA Training

The workforce is changing. Expectations are shifting. If L&D wants to keep up and stay relevant to early careers talent, it has to go beyond process and policy. Gaming shows us how to make learning addictive, how to create meaningful progression, and how to hook attention in a distracted world.

This isn’t about gimmicks. It’s about borrowing the mechanics of play to build serious learning systems

At MDA Training, we’ve embedded these gaming-inspired principles directly into our early careers programmes. Our induction experiences are built around immersive business simulations, real-time feedback, and collaborative challenges that mimic the pace and complexity of the real workplace. New hires don’t just learn — they do. They make decisions, solve problems, and work in teams from the outset, building the confidence and competence they need to hit the ground running. It’s onboarding designed not as a formality, but as a launchpad.