Supporting parametrization of business games for multiple educational settings

The parametrization of business games benefits from the usage of a multi-tier architecture and software services. This paper shows that the multi-tier concept supports parametrization of business games for multiple educational settings, where for example the number of players, the scenario to use, and the underlying simulation model may differ each time. Using the concept of multi-tier architectures, we implemented a strict decoupling between the graphical user interface layer, the business logic layer, and the resource management layer. This decoupling is supported by using interfaces between the different services. The services have been successfully used to develop, adapt, and use the distributor game for different educational settings. Further research will focus on extending the set of services to better support changes in graphical user interfaces that players use and the specification of the services´ parameters themselves using a Web-based user interface.