LingoVerse: virtual language learning through gamification

Abstract The paper explores the use of virtual reality (VR) games for enhancing motivation and effectiveness in foreign language learning through virtual environments. In addition to increasing students’ motivation to study a foreign language, it also aims to explore the use of the app as a complementary tool in formal educational settings. A VR language-learning game, LingoVerse , was developed and tested, with a focus on gamification mechanisms. An evaluation study that included pre- and post-test proficiency tests and user feedback, provides preliminary signals that the game may support language acquisition and motivation. We also consider the technical limitations of VR devices and discuss the challenges reported in interviews by individual users. The findings suggest that the LingoVerse game showed a potentially positive effect on conventional test performance and language learning outcomes, and that VR may be suitable as a supplementary tool for practice in both traditional language education and individual learning.