Serious Gaming

OK so serious gaming is taking off in a big way and given that *it* is my day job I probably should be taking serious note of whats happening...then why oh why is every time I read about serious games in the mainstream press they're talking shite?

Example from the BBC News article above: 

Anyone sending a message adds some of their limited supply of virtual coins, called Serios, to show how important they consider that e-mail to be.

I mean WTF?!?

I understand how making work fun can improve productivity, but I think there are some flaws in this mechanism, the main one being that if you have currency YOU WANT TO KEEP IT FOR YOURSELF and spend it on things FOR YOURSELF, not give it to other people as (effectively) a bribe to read you mail.

Also it's another fantastic way for spammers to hit your inbox with e-mails with loads of coins, and you end up with a virtual pocket full of shrapnel...