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Participants: A.K.A. "Spinfluence - How to Make Games and Influence People " Bryan Cash, Schell Games Kenny Shea Dinkin, PlayFirst (Former) Bernd Kreimeier, Independent Steve Meretzky, Playdom David Warhol, Realtime Associates, Inc. Facilitator: Michael Steele, Electron Wave Movies and TV have, for a long time and consciously, embedded cultural and political messages in their products. Games have rarely done so, except for some heavy-handed and ineffective examples, or in some cases unintentionally delivering messages such as the infallibility of the military. However, games are poised to deliver messages as well as – perhaps more effectively than – these older media. We brainstormed a set of guiding principles and a set of tools/techniques for successfully delivering political and cultural messages in games. We also identified several game ideas, and fleshed out the details of one of those designs, a Facebook-based game called “Bedford Falls”. We have just been through a disastrous election – regardless of any particular political ideology – because (again) so many of the voters who voted against candidates did so while ignorant of facts, and due to this lack of information (and in many cases misinformation), often voted against their own interests. The members of this workgroup hope to use games to open people’s mind to broader cultural perspectives, and also to simply create a more informed electorate. There have been many games made with this goal, but generally with the message very overt and heavy- handed. The games presumably make the game creators and the players feel good about having done something helpful, but are generally played too briefly and/or by too few people to have much of an impact. They just aren’t good enough as games to deliver their messages widely and deeply. Other media have unabashedly used their media to deliver cultural and political messages in their products. Examples include The West Wing (ongoing wrestling with political messages), Will and Grace (a gay protagonist treated as a matter-of-fact “normal” character), Star Trek (occasional episodes that were messages about then-current events such as the Vietnam War), M*A*S*H, and Brokeback Mountain. Games, because of how long they remain in a player’s life and how much mindshare they can occupy between play sessions, have the potential to be an even more effective delivery mechanism for such messages. But, to date, they have not been effectively used that way, and many of the lessons taught by games are negative and inadvertent … such as the many FPS games that teach that teach that it’s okay to mindlessly kill off members of other cultures. Thus, our goal is to develop and dispense a toolbox of techniques for delivering this type of political content within games. In some cases, these might be projects that explicitly start with such a political or cultural goal; in other cases, designers already working on non-political projects can subversively insert some positive messages into games they are working on. One important consideration is the distinction between an interactive messaging game as manipulation or discourse. One motivation behind this study was to counteract deliberate (disgusting) manipulation, which can be done with a product that exposes manipulation techniques, either through parody of manipulation or discourse about it (which itself can be direct or indirect) Or, an interactive political message product could actually use and improve on the classic techniques of manipulation from traditional media to promote messaging - but then, would that be winning or losing the game! (Disclaimer: We acknowledge that the workgroup has a mutual progressive bias, but this bias has no bearing on the techniques and devices we are exploring for imbedded game messaging.) We want to use well-crafted and fun games, in familiar genres, to “lure” players in and (once hooked), begin repeatedly delivering progressive messages and issues. For example, 150 years ago, Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”, which enlightened millions about the issue of slavery and was arguably the greatest single example of a creative work that changes people’s minds about an issue. However, the book merely used the same popularly literary form of the day, a sentimental novel, except that the protagonist was an escaped slave; thus, its success lay in its familiarity to its target audience. Thus, the most effective games at delivering positive political messages will not be games like “Darfur is Dying” or “Oiligarchy”, which are obviously “message” games and are also produced with low budgets and low production values, so players don’t stick around the game for very much time. Instead, they will be games which at first glance are much like the popular games of today… FPS games sold through the retail channel, hidden object games sold through the casual downloadable market, or social games or Facebook… and which only gradually and subtly reveal their political and cultural content. A list of the best practices for incorporating political messaging into games: Don’t be preachy. The content should be covert rather than overt. You don’t want to “preach to the choir”, you want to reach people with opposing viewpoints. If the game is overly about the political message or messages, the unconverted (those with an opposing point of view) will have an immediate “allergic reaction” to the game and not give it a chance. The game should reach the widest possible audience … a casual game will have a wider potential addressable market. But … we also want the game to command a lot of the player’s mindshare … a hardcore game is more likely to do that. If the game teaches through player choice, make sure that the players really have agency in those choices. If they are Hobson’s Choices – if there’s only one correct choice to advance or success – the choice will be meaningless and non-impactful. As old media do, tie visual and audio feedback to player action to emotionally reinforce the game’s messages. Use strengths of the genre. For example, FPS games are great at putting you into another character’s shoes. Facebook games let you tap into your network of friends and are long-form games which are constantly refreshed with new content. Most games in the political realm to date have been commissioned efforts by an agency with an “axe to grind” or a very specific message to promote. As such, they are typically free-to-play with no revenue model. Therefore, the games are typically of low to moderate budget, which makes them pack messaging heavily, even awkwardly, into the narrative, and they have no ongoing revenue model to refresh content. Compare this to popular films and television shows that convey overt and covert political messaging. Not only are they crafted to be commercial by appealing to a large audience that does not necessarily expect messaging, they can be critically acclaimed enough to the point of winning an Academy Award. The ideal Spinfluence game will therefore appeal to a broad enough audience to be received as entertainment first, thereby underwriting development and gaining broad distribution, yet will carry the message that is in fact the goal of the effort. Yet, commercial publishers are loathe to take a political stand on an issue; their charter starts and ends with entertainment. In reference to exploring a for-profit business relationship with a not-for-profit business, one major publisher CEO was quoted (OK paraphrased) as saying “If our shareholders even heard a rumor we were speaking with [education agency XYZ], our stock prices would take a hit.” So, funding, or bootstrap funding, for a major endeavor into a game in this realm likely needs to come from resource-laden politically-motivated for-profit companies. And, the designs need to balance public acceptance and price point with the development budget. Example 1: “Bedford Falls” – Social Network Game In “Bedford Falls”, a social network game, you are creating a small-town-USA village. Think “Social City” but with a closer, more intimate view. You play a newly-arrived resident, fleeing the city for the peace and paradise of small-town life, building a house and grounds. It looks just like many other Facebook games. But as you begin to get and solve quests, you begin to realize that the town is very corrupt and you need to become involved in order to improve things. Thus, you are building your town not through a mayor-like role or a god-like role, but through your actions as citizen-activist. Your house and your town have various metrics to show how you are doing: your home value, the town’s budget deficit or surplus, an overall measure of the town’s happiness, etc. A quest might involve “grinding” by going door-to-door to collect signature or drop off leaflets, or asking your friends for help. (“You need 5 friends to send you Completed Petitions.”) Quests are optional; you can ignore or even delete quests you aren’t interested in completing. Examples of issues that can be raised through these quests: A Muslim family moves onto the block. Do you make them feel welcome, ignore them, or try to get them evicted? Should pot be legalized? If so, prison costs will go down and tax revenues will rise. Cut funding for education? If so, property values will drop. The town’s hospital is in danger of going out of business. Illegal immigrants are working in town. Invest in a stem cell lab in town? Build a mosque in town. The prison is out of cells; build a new prison. Quests all have an impact on the town’s metrics.

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