Two leaders in the IT world, Microsoft and Google, are working to incorporate gamification into two of their respective products, Visual Studio and Google Maps, as part of a trend that illustrates a forward leaning interest in technology that is used to increase the adoption of said technology.
Microsoft is doing their part by releasing a new Visual Studio plug-in that enables developers to unlock achievements, receive badges and receive recognition on a leaderboard that is determined by the code the developers write. Google will soon be releasing a gamified maps app that will use Google Maps at its core, and will be included in the Google+ Games platform.
