DIGITAL GAMES FOR ENGAGEMENT
A digital gaming platform to engage communities in the co-creation of urban green spaces, with a possible reward system.
This tool could involve a wide range of people, including young people, adults, people with disabilities, schools, volunteers etc.
A digital gaming platform would need to be purchased, created, subscribed to and/or downloaded. Possible software packages include: Flow Scape, Minecraft and Cities: Skylines.
A digital platform can engage hard to reach groups and can widen participation.
Overview
of the Engagement Tool/Innovation:
This tool
uses digital games to enable participants to engage in park co-design. Games
can be used to engage communities who do not traditionally have a prominent
voice in park design and decision-making.
Role in
decision-making:
Community
members can be involved in designing green spaces through, for example,
offering recommendations, preferences and ideas as part of the game and/or
consultation process.
Consulting: Can facilitate continuous feedback, which will help understand the needs/wants of park users over a prolonged period.
Hard to reach groups: this option could be used to provide underrepresented groups the chance to engage.
Improved understanding: will help park providers better understand what people value in parks.
Online: offers a way of engaging people digitally, though can also be run in-person via workshops.
Informing: some games can or can be designed to educate citizens about resource constraints e.g. costs of play equipment.
Suitable for:
This would be suitable for park design and co-creation projects.
Resources needed:
Software – e.g. FlowScape, Minecraft, Cities: Skylines (would need the downloadable content pack: Parklife). Costs vary. Software can be designed in collaboration with a design company e.g. XEODesign or streamed via a site licensing programme. Another option is a Block-by-Block program which uses Minecraft as a participatory design tool to engage people in urban planning and public space design.
Time – Time demands vary and may depend on the need for collaboration and whether or not games can be played at home or need to be on the organisation’s premises.
Staff – Staff will be needed to answer participant questions e.g. how to access or use the game. Staff will need to go through user feedback and designs. If workshops are used, staff are needed for these.
Administration – Help with administration and the running and storage of data could be provided if using an outside company like XEODesign. This would limit the need for internal staff to have a high level of relevant IT expertise, knowledge, or skills.
Formats:
Online – This would be suitable for online engagement and, as such, has potential to reach a high number of participants.
In person – There are different ways this could be done in person e.g. through workshops with access to computer facilities and/or adopting a physical version using Lego or similar, which would allow people without access to the software the ability to participate.
Advantages:
- Possible large-scale engagement.
- Potential to include groups who would normally lack representation.
- Continued user feedback over time.
- Potential to educate participants in the design process and in relation to resource constraints.
- Possibility of the interaction being conducted in participants homes.
- This technique is innovative, fun, engaging and offers something ‘unique’ which may encourage participants to take part.
- Allows participants to be creative and use their imaginations which could allow for some ‘out of the box’ approaches and results.
- Could appeal to people who want or need to engage without the need for speaking or writing.
Challenges:
- Possibility of there being only a few participants.
- Providing the necessary information to teach users how to interact with the game.
- If workshops are used, relationships with schools or other institutions may be needed, as well as the appropriate equipment necessary to conduct the workshop.
- Some may be put off by the use of games and technology.
- There could be licencing and copyright issues relating to using a licenced gaming product.
- Costs of software and equipment.
- Acquiring and implementing the software in a way in which it is accessible to as many people as possible can be a challenge.
Sources, good practice and case studies:
Manor, Texas – Online game which allowed citizens to submit ideas for improving city services. This also came with the idea to give them points and cash these in for prizes, such as the opportunity to be mayor for a day. https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-DGB-12555
Anaheim, California – Mojang (creators of Minecraft), approached the City to use the game to design a park through a scheme called Block by Block, which uses Minecraft to reconceive public spaces. https://www.blockbyblock.org/our-work
Win the White House – Useful for looking at how games can educate participants. This game teaches US citizens about the electoral process. https://www.govtech.com/archive/column-using-video-games-to-engage-citizens.html
Games for Change – This is a page set up by game designers. They focus on projects and partnerships which create games that addresses national and local challenges. https://www.gamesforchange.org/projects-programs/?_sft_service_category=workshops
More information/links:
Hu, C (2019) Landscape Games: Tools for Collaboratively Shaping Our Environment, Available at: https://www.asla.org/2019studentawards/686177_Landscape_Games_Tools_For_Collaboratively_Shaping_Our_Environment.html [Accessed: 21/05/2022].
Kamensky, J (2013). ‘Using video games to engage citizens’. Available at: https://www.govtech.com/archive/column-using-video-games-to-engage-citizens.html [Accessed: 21/05/2022].
Parmentier, G. and Gandia, R. (2013). Managing Sustainable Innovation with a User Community Toolkit: The Case of the Video GameTrackmania. Creativity and Innovation Management, [online] 22(2), pp.195–208. Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/caim.12021 [Accessed 21/05/2022].
Bodin, M. (2018) Landscape Games, ‘The video game Minecraft has become a new tool for community engagement’ (2018). Available at: https://landscapearchitecturemagazine.org/2018/03/06/landscape-games/ [Accessed: 21/05/2022].
Valentino-DeVries, J (2018). ‘A hotbed of tech innovation: the government of Manor, Texas’. Available at: https://www.wsj.com/articles/BL-DGB-12555 [Accessed: 21/05/2022].
James, A. (2018), “Co-Design And Co-construction: LEGO®-Based Approaches For Complex, Creative Learning”, International Journal of Management and Applied Research, Vol. 5, No. 4, pp. 304-312. Available at: https://ijmar.org/v5n4/18-023.html [accessed 10/6/22]
List of potential collaborators or services:
https://www.blockbyblock.org/our-work – The foundation set up by Mojang to help build public spaces
https://www.gamesforchange.org/projects-programs/?_sft_service_category=workshops – Website set up by game developers
http://www.xeodesign.com/services/ – Game development company who create games
https://partner.steamgames.com/pccafe – lessened library which would allow you to gain access to a wide range games.