Background. The EMERGO method and online platform enable the development and delivery of
scenario-based serious games that foster students to acquire professional competence. One of the
main goals of the platform is to provide a user-friendly authoring environment for creating virtual
environments where students can perform authentic tasks.
Aim. We present the findings of an in-depth qualitative case study of the platform´s authoring
environment and compare our findings on usability with those found for comparable environments
in literature.
Method. We carried out semi-structured interviews, with two experienced game developers who
have authored a game for higher education, and a literature review of comparable environments.
Findings. The analysis shows that the usability of the authoring environment is problematic,
especially regarding understandability and learnability, which is in line with findings of
comparable environments. Other findings are that authoring is well integrated with the EMERGO
method and that functionality and reliability of the authoring environment are valued.
Practical implications. The lessons learned are presented in the form of general guidelines to
improve the understandability and learnability of authoring environments for serious games