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How online gaming can change the world

Justin Olivetti — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: World of Warcraft, Culture, Academic, Education

Jane McGonigal (a 10-year game designer of projects such as the I Love Bees ARG for Halo 2) has a self-professed "crazy idea" -- that gamers have the potential to change the world for the better by doing what they're already doing. At her speech, people chuckle when she first says this, but twenty minutes later they're giving her a standing ovation.

She begins by stating the obvious: we are a gaming culture that flees the "broken" world to a virtual one that offers a better and more rewarding collaborative environment. "When we're in game worlds I believe that many of us become the best versions of ourselves," she said. "The most likely to help at a moment's notice, most likely to stick with a problem as long as it takes, to get up after failure and try again."

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How online gaming can change the world originally appeared on Massively on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Futurist Jamais Cascio discusses Superstruct

James Egan — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 16:00:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Sci-fi, Culture, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Interviews, MMO industry, New titles, Politics, Roleplaying

Superstruct is the world's first massively multiplayer forecasting game. What does this mean? As a player of this alternate reality game, you envision your life as it would be in 2019 and collaborate with other players to come up with innovative solutions to global 'superthreats'. These superthreats may bring us to a tipping point that determines whether the human race either solves its looming problems and continues existence, or society collapses under the weight of its troubles.

The excellent sci-fi centric io9 has an interview with futurist Jamais Cascio, a member of the Superstruct game design team. Cascio discusses his work on "21st Century Ideas" (essentially a toolkit of solutions to the game's superthreats), the influence of Children of Men on the game and its setting, and some of the innovative creations he's seen from players in the relatively short time since the game launched. It's definitely worth a read if you're interested in a game grounded in futurist speculation. If this piques your interest in Superstruct, don't wait to find out more -- the game will only run for another 5 weeks. Be sure to check out Massively's primer on Superstruct to help you get started, as well as Jane McGonigal's Avant Game blog for more info about the game.

Futurist Jamais Cascio discusses Superstruct originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 18 Oct 2008 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How to play Superstruct

James Egan — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Sci-fi, Video, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Game mechanics, Launches, New titles, Tips and tricks

While dealing with these sweeping global issues would seem to be impossibly complex, Superstruct's gameplay -- fortunately-- is not. The game is comprised of a kind of storytelling on the part of its players, based off of the scenarios and updates presented by The Institute for the Future. Some of these scenarios, like the superthreat videos seen earlier, are there to establish the game's backdrop, but more info is on the way. Superstruct players will spin off their own ideas based on both the IFTF-provided scenario updates and (especially) player-generated content. In this respect, the gameplay is quite freeform.

Playing the game breaks down to a few easy steps:

Join the Superstruct community by registering at the official site.

Create your 'future self' through your personal survival profile.

Discover the superthreats (via the breaking news videos).

Adopt a superthreat.

Tell a superthreat story, through whatever medium you choose, via the Tell-a-Story form.

Search for allies.

Start superstructing on the wikis (sharing your ideas for redesigning the future.)

Check out the video below and let one of the game's creators, Jane McGonigal, show you how the game is played, and be sure to note her tips on how to succeed in Superstruct.

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How to play Superstruct originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Superthreats: Outlaw Planet and Generation Exile

James Egan — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Sci-fi, Video, Culture, Economy, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, MMO industry, New titles, Roleplaying

Outlaw Planet Superthreat

"In 2019, the mobile internet and sensor networks we rely on to hold our societies together are being hacked, griefed, and gamed."

The effects of technology turned against us impacts the democratic process, social networks, and every institution connected to the internet. Sophisticated criminal groups employ 'transparency bombs' in online banking attacks (and "World of Starcraft" players no less). The target financial institutions are major players in the virtual currency market, but the issues resulting from this undermined security affect private citizens as well as the banks.

Superstruct Challenge: How can we come together to secure our assets, both real and virtual?

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Superthreats: Outlaw Planet and Generation Exile originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Superthreats: Quarantine, Ravenous, and Power Struggle

James Egan — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Sci-fi, Culture, Economy, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Launches, MMO industry, New titles, Politics, Roleplaying

Quarantine Superthreat

"In 2019, Respiratory Distress Syndrome, or ReDS, is here, and it's not going anywhere."

Outbreaks of ReDS have become commonplace, initially in tropical and sub-tropical regions, then spreading to other cities such as Stockholm where over 15,000 citizens are living with ReDS and its chronic, severe symptoms. Relief organizations struggle to handle the situation as it is presently, yet ReDS is spreading to other regions of the world while remaining incurable.

Superstruct Challenge: What can we do in our own communities to provide ReDS relief and support?

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Superthreats: Quarantine, Ravenous, and Power Struggle originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Superstruct: The world's first massively multiplayer forecasting game

James Egan — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Real life, Sci-fi, Video, Culture, Economy, Events, real-world, Events, in-game, Launches, MMO industry, New titles, Politics, Roleplaying

Forget what you typically expect from your average client-based MMO. In fact, the title you're going to read about here differs markedly from the type of game we normally cover at Massively, but that makes it no less interesting. Superstruct is truly something different -- a futuristic alternate reality game that launches today (October 6) and lasts only 6 weeks, developed by a team at The Institute for the Future (IFTF) -- a not-for-profit think tank based in Palo Alto, California. For lack of a better, and less inflammatory, description, Superstruct is a thinking person's MMO, and is in many respects a social experiment; the game is an attempt to harness the collective intelligence and problem-solving abilities of its playerbase to make forecasts about the world's future and its escalating problems.

In fact, Superstruct bills itself as the world's first massively multiplayer forecasting game, with the tagline: Play the game. Invent the future. Despite being set in 2019 and looking forward to world issues that will become crises 20 years beyond that, Superstruct's genre is more futurist than sci-fi. Superstruct doesn't feature the traditional game elements we've come to expect from a massively multiplayer title. Instead, it fosters new ways for players to work together, testing out their ideas and strategies in a creative, collaborative brainstorming experiment that spans different mediums. Plausible future scenarios will be posited to the player base, challenging them to really think and produce compelling responses to the events in the game.

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Superstruct: The world's first massively multiplayer forecasting game originally appeared on Massively on Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gamasutra's 20 Women in Games list

Akela Talamasca — Sat, 24 May 2008 17:00:00 EST

Filed under: MMO industry, News items, Opinion, Academic

For those who complain that there aren't enough women in gaming, you need look no further than this -- the Gamasutra 20: Women in Games list. This is a compilation of the movers and shakers in the industry who just happen to be female. It's a broad spectrum list, but there are a few MMO-specifics in there -- notably Jane McGonigal, most famous for her work on the ilovebees ARG; 38 Studios' Vice President of Business Development Jennifer MacLean; Laralyn McWilliams, SOE's Lead Designer; and Disney Interactive Studios' Senior Designer Patricia Pizer.

Each entry includes the subject's career overview, major accomplishments, innovations, and what her peers say about her. It's a fascinating read, and you may discover that there's more gender diversity in gaming than you previously suspected.

Gamasutra's 20 Women in Games list originally appeared on Massively on Sat, 24 May 2008 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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