Clima Futura @ VU -- communicating (unconvenient) science

Anton Eliëns, Marek van de Watering, Hugo Huurdeman, Winoe Bhikharie, Haroen Lemmers, Pier Vellinga

Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam

game as social system


actorsrule(s)resource(s)
players eventsgame space
rolesevaluationsituation
goalsfacilitator(s)context

criteria


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Fig 1. Climate Star

climate star


simulation parameters


...


Fig 2. Tradeoffs Mitigation vs Adaptation

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Fig 3. The Greenhouse Effect

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Fig 1. Game play, Simulation, Exploration

game elements


  1. game cycle -- turns in subsequent rounds (G)
  2. simulation(s) -- based on climate model (W)
  3. exploration -- by means of interactive video (E)

game event description format


scenario(s)


...


Fig 2. Clima Futura Architecture

module(s)


  1. climate model(s) - action script module(s)
  2. game play interaction - event-handler per game event
  3. video content module - video fragment(s) and interaction overlays
  4. minigame(s) - flash module(s) with actionscript interface
  5. Clima Futura - integration of modules 1-4, plus server-side ranking
  6. adapted versions -- educational, commercial
  7. multi-user version --with server-side support

argument(s)


presentation


  1. philosophy -- pathos, ethos, logos
  2. trailer -- drama, apocalyptic, appeal to player
  3. climate star -- scientific issues & game play
  4. game development -- architecture and project plan
[Humour] Dormann C., Barr P. and Biddle R. (2007),
Humour Theory and Videogames: Laughter in the Slaughter, In Proc. of the 2006 ACM SIGGRAPH symposium on Videogames
[Serious] Eliens A. and Chang T. (2007),
Let's be serious -- ICT is not a (simple) game, In Proc. FUBUTEC 2007
[VUSL] Eliens A., Feldberg F., Konijn E., Compter E. (2007),
VU @ Second Life -- creating a (virtual) community of learners, In Proc. EUROMEDIA 2007
[Nature] Kabat P., van Vierssen W., Veraart J. Vellinga P.,
Aerts J. (2005). Climate proofing the Netherlands, Nature 438, pp. 283-284
[Magic] Klabbers J.H.G. (2006),
The Magic Circle: principles of Gaming and Simulation, Sense Publishers