The Game Café: Exploring Students’ Perceptions of Learning Experiences

Game-based learning (GBL) has increasingly been recognized as a valuable approach for supporting student engagement, motivation, and skill development in educational settings. However, comparatively little research has examined analog gameplay within informal, co-curricular higher education environments. Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (SDT), this exploratory study examined students’ perceptions of their experiences at a university’s Academic Skills Centre’s (ASC) Game Café (not course-based), with particular attention to motivation, social engagement, and perceived academic skill development. Using a descriptive, cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 44 student participants through a researcher-developed survey consisting of Likert-scale and open-ended questions. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, while qualitative responses were thematically coded. Internal consistency analyses demonstrated acceptable to strong reliability across survey scales (Q6 α = 0.70; Q7 α = 0.89). Findings indicated that students perceived a consistent association between the Game Café and positive emotional experiences, collaboration, peer interaction, and the perceived development of transferable skills such as communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving. Participants also described the café as a low-pressure and socially supportive environment that fostered motivation and informal learning beyond the classroom. Overall, the findings suggest that analog, co-curricular game-based environments may support students’ perceived engagement, belonging, and learning within higher education contexts.