  Research has established increased engagement and positive behavioral,
attitudinal, and learning outcomes from educational games. Although engagement
begets these benefits, there is a lack of research on how students engage with
educational games, especially when self-directed. Additionally, research on the
effects of engagement on performance is conflicting. This study aimed to
identify barriers to students' self-directed engagement with two anatomy
educational games, methods to overcome identified barriers, and the impact of
engagement on learning performance. Employing the within-case and cross-case
approach and triangulation of data, four educational-game specific barriers
emerged (from most common to least common): 1) negative perceptions of
educational games, 2) incompatible audience, 3) incompatible difficulty, and 4)
price. Path analysis found that engagement may have insignificant, positive
effects on performance. These findings indicate that students' self-directed
engagement with educational games is impeded by unique barriers and engagement
may not be vital for performance. Suggestions for game design and marketing
emerged to help developers, teachers, and researchers overcome identified
barriers.
