Finding ways to help nursing students understand the application of didactic content can be challenging for faculty. One challenge faculty face is motivating students with thought provoking and memorable content using traditional methods. Educational games and gaming attributes have been shown to affect student motivation and support learning. The aim of this study was to gain knowledge, filling a knowledge gap, regarding which gaming attributes motivate nursing students to become engaged in course content that is not graded. Badges were used as a reward system to examine if nursing students would complete an increased number of non-graded case studies, and have a higher score on the posttest than when badges were not used. Data was collected using an A-B single group design during two consecutive specialty courses. A one-tailed dependent t-test was used to compare the average scores of case study posttests and the average number of case studies completed during both phases. All participants were nursing students in a three-year accelerated baccalaureate degree program attending a college of nursing located in the southwest. There was no significant difference with the use of badges on the average scores of case studies t(24) = -1.332, p = 0.1. However, there was a significant difference with the use of badges on the number of completed case studies t(24) = -2.5, p = 0.01. This study adds empirical evidence to the literature that gamification attributions positively influences student motivation and continued engagement in course content. Findings demonstrated a significant difference in the engagement of nursing students in non-graded coursework during the course where badges were offered as rewards as opposed to the course where badges were not offered as rewards. As technology savvy Millennials fill the classrooms and nursing faculty search for new teaching strategies to engage their students, the results of this study promotes the use of badging as a way to actively engage nursing students in course content. Additional research with a larger sample is recommended to support the findings and examine the effect gamification attributions have on knowledge retention. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]