How to use Kickstarter to crowdfund your game

February 17, 2012 | by Julie Coniglio | Comments: 1

By Julie Coniglio


A character from “Socks Inc.”

Crowdfunding is a great option for games for good – especially for causes that already have communities attached to them. With supporters and end-users funding your game project, you don’t have a publisher or investor vetting your ideas. Essentially, online crowdfunding platforms are vehicles to create change from the bottom up. While they can be powerful tools, they are uncharted territory for many people. This post outlines the importance of a strategic approach to three main aspects of a crowdfunding campaign: community, incentives, and your personal impression.

Kickstarter is the most powerful crowdfunding platform. A few months ago, the makers of the D-Day Dice Board Game raised over $170k to manufacture and distribute their award-winning game. The goal was just $13k. Our favorite “Secret Headquarters for Worldchanging Game Developers”, Gameful, was also funded on Kickstarter and raised $62k more than they set out to. Veteran game designer Tim Schafer reached his funding goal of $400k in eight hours and reached over $1 million in less than a day!

Every campaign doesn’t need lots of dollar signs – the platform offers flexibility for creators looking to launch small initiatives for an under-addressed or niche cause. There are other platform options such as 8-bit Funding, Rocket Hub, IndieGoGo, and, newest to the scene, Lucky Ant. Whichever platform you choose, these are some key insights to keep in mind.

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To Understand the Nuances of Race, First Get Frustrated

February 9, 2012 | by Josh Spiro | Comments: 2

By Josh Spiro

Two groups of people take a standardized test. One group gets asked to fill out their race before the exam, the other doesn’t. This simple question produces a phenomenon called “Stereotype Threat”, which makes people, particularly people of color, subconsciously anxious that they might prove a stereotype true, and drastically reduces their performance.

This is the type of thing that Michael Baran thinks about in his work as a cultural anthropologist and diversity consultant; it’s also the type of information he’s compelled players to think about through his app-based quiz game, Guess My Race (a 2011 Games for Change Award nominee). Created in collaboration with Michael Handelman, Baran’s close friend from college and head of the interactive design agency Playtime Interactive, Guess My Race shows players photos of different people and asks them to guess how each person racially self-identifies. It is a deceptively challenging question that Baran says “messes with people’s competitive urges.” The player then gets to see the person’s answer as well as a tidbit of information (like the one above about stereotype threat) in order to put the personal stories in a larger context.

Since the app launched in May 2010, it has been exhibited in a number of museums, including the Boston Museum of Science and the San Diego Museum of Man, where Baran says it has reached hundreds of thousands of people. He’s comfortable calling the app a “game for change”, though he acknowledges that some people think of it as more of a learning tool than a game “since you can’t really get better at it.” He wanted to create a game that addressed questions of race and identity in a fun way as a counterbalance to the heavy-handed and patronizing approaches he felt were often brought to the topic.

In our interview below, Baran discusses the pain and exhilaration of watching people play test one’s work, how the media dodges deep analysis of race in favor of discussing Obama’s favorite beer, and how making the player frustrated can ultimately be educational.

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Full schedule for Games for Change @ GDC released

January 31, 2012 | by Jeff Ramos | Comments: 2

There’s one month to go before we bring our inaugural daylong summit to the Game Developers Conference (GDC) in San Francisco, on March 6.

Early bird pricing ends on February 2nd – so take advantage of GDC’s discounted pricing by registering now.

For those of you who haven’t registered, allows us to stoke your curiosity by showing you what you can expect at the Games for Change @ GDC Summit…

 

AGENDA

How Designing for Love Can Change the World – 10:00am

In a series of dynamic micro-lectures moderated by Jane McGonigal, six game designers will discuss how games can generate profound emotional impact.

Battlestorm: Games as a Powerful Tool for Community Engagement – 11:15AM

Zynga New York and The Knight Foundation will team up to share a postmortem of Battlestorm, a project that combines multiple gaming approaches to empower youth around hurricane preparedness in a Gulf Coast community.

WeTopia: Game Companies & Nonprofits Creating New Business Models – 11:50AM

Lincoln Brown, CEO of Sojo Studios, will outline the unique “hybrid business model” behind his studio’s premier Facebook game “WeTopia”.

AAA Game Mechanics Inspiring Learning and Assessment Mechanics – 1:45PM

Jan Plass of NYU’s Games for Learning Institute will analyze how popular game mechanics from successful commercial games can inspire the gameplay and evaluation of games that aim to foster learning.

“Elephant Safari: Milan 2011″ and “Activate! Abu Dhabi” will be featured
in our Microtalks for Change panel.

Winning Behavior-Change Game Design & Engagement – 2:20PM

Following last year’s highly popular panel, this updated version will provide new case studies, research, and practical design takeaways from compelling projects with the purpose of affecting sustainable personal development.

From Milan to Abu Dhabi: Microtalks for Change – 3:00PM

This jam-packed microtalks session will look at innovative games for change from all over the world: Abu Dhabi, Milan, the United Kingdom, to all across America.

More Than Fun: Designing Games With Purpose – 4:30PM

Phil Stuart of the Award-Winning studio Preloaded in the UK will break down some of the game design techniques his studio employs to create games for change that receive millions of plays.

Keynote: Ian Livingstone, From Dungeons to Downing Street – How games are growing up for good! – 5:05PM

The founder of Eidos (Tomb Raider) is giving back – from raising the profile of the industry at 10 Downing Street, to GamesAid, a unique charity formed by the UK gaming industry.

 

SPEAKERS

Ian Livingstone, the Life President of Eidos, will speak about how he’s helping
the UK gaming industry give back.


We will be featuring the work and thoughts of over 20 speakers during our daylong summit. Representing the game development community will be…

Scott Brodie (Heart Shaped Games), Jane McGonigal (Social Chocolate), Martin Hollis (Zoonami), Chelsea Howe (Social Chocolate), Mitu Khandaker (The Tiniest Shark Ltd.), Michael Molinari (Namco Bandai), Scott Hoffer (Zynga New York), Lincoln Brown (Sojo Studios), Michael Kim (Kairos Labs), Colleen Macklin (Parsons / Local No. 12), David Mariner (FunRigger), Mathias Crawford (Natron Baxter Applied Gaming), Rob Davis (Playniac), Nick Fortugno (Playmatics), Phil Stuart (Preloaded)

In addition, our summit will feature dedicated members from academia, games research, and foundations, including…

Jane Pincknard (UC Santa Cruz), Jan L. Plass (NYU Games for Learning Institute), Nicole Lazzaro (XEODesign), John Murphy (ChicagoQuest Schools), Jessica Goldfin (Knight Foundation), Mayur Patel (Knight Foundation)

REGISTER NOW

Early bird pricing ends on February 2nd and registration closes on February 29th.

Posted in Events, G4C Announcement | Tagged , | 2 Comments

“A Closed World”: Approaching Gender in Games and Real-life

January 26, 2012 | by Jeff Ramos | Comments: 1

In 2006, the Singapore government began working with The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in a partnership to research digital media. One of their core projects was the Singapore-MIT Game Lab, whose goal was to research how the latest game technology, culture, art, history, and business could contribute to Singapore’s gaming industry. For the past 5 years, this lab has been producing game prototypes that have pushed the boundaries of game design by testing new ideas, topics, and approaches.

Much of the Game Lab’s work revolves around their summer program. For 9 weeks, 40 – 50 Singapore students come to MIT to work directly with students and faculty. The amount of students and faculty working on projects creates a fast paced environment that allows for the rapid creation of short, yet fairly complex games.

One of their most recent projects is A Closed World, a game prototpye that aims to explore LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) issues. As part of their research, the students wanted to challenge the lack of queer content in games, while navigating the challenge of “getting it right”, or in other words, creating content that feels organic and appropriate. To learn more about the challenges in creating A Closed World, I conducted an in depth interview with Todd Harper, a postdoctoral researcher at the Singapore-MIT Game Lab.

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Posted in Game Spotlight, Interview | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

9th Annual Games for Change Festival Call for Talks & Presentations – NOW LIVE!

January 18, 2012 | by Jeff Ramos | Comments: 3

9th Annual Games for Change Festival Call for Content

The 9th Annual Games for Change Festival will be taking place on June 18-20, 2012. The call for talks and presentations is now live! The Festival is the largest gaming event in New York City and the only event that facilitates the creation and distribution of social impact games that serve as critical tools in humanitarian and educational efforts.

 

To submit a talk or presentation, click here.

Submission deadline: Friday, February 17 at 11:59 pm EST.

Accepted speakers will receive a complimentary pass to the Festival and will be notified on March 16.

 

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Posted in G4C Announcement, G4C Festival, Opportunities | Tagged | 3 Comments

“Passing the Ball” of online safety, part two

January 16, 2012 | by Jeff Ramos

In early October 2011, the Game Developer Conference Online (GDC Online) debuted a game called Passing the Ball to tackle the topic of online safety for children. Recently we spoke to Gregory Weir, the lead game designer on the project to learn how his design aesthetics helped create the experience of the game.

But to learn more about why GDC Online chose to release a “game for change”, I spoke to their parent company’s Simon Carless, the Executive Vice President of UBM TechWeb Game Network via email. In our interview we spoke about the importance of corporate social responsibility (CSR), games as art, and the public’s reaction to Passing the Ball.

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Kristof: For Journalists, Games are the New Social Media

January 12, 2012 | by Josh Spiro | Comments: 3

By Josh Spiro

Nothing motivates you to arrive on time like the flush of embarrassment over missing an important event. Just ask Nicholas Kristof. As the first blogger for The New York Times’ website, back in 2003, he played an important role in yanking the Gray Lady into the world of Web 2.0. Yet he readily admits that established journalists and news outlets were Johnny-come-latelys to social media. Not eager to be tardy again, Kristof, has since endeavored to stay ahead of the curve in the intersecting worlds of journalism and technology.

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Codecademy turns learning to code into a fresh, game-like experience

January 4, 2012 | by Jeff Ramos | Comments: 1

The face of education is changing (or so we hope!). While kids still learn from text books and instructors, organizations and individuals are working hard to create a paradigm shift. Initiatives like Khan Academy or Skillshare are redefining how and when we choose to learn. But a greater challenge in learning still comes from understanding and utilizing complex skill sets. As we move further into a world dominated by technology, the need for proficient programmers will grow. And even though coding is the backbone of every great website, startup, and piece of technology we use, learning how to program still remains complicated. Until now?

After graduating from Columbia University, Zach Sims and Ryan Bubinsky created Codecademy, a startup that plans on teaching the entire world how to code. Codecademy is a unique title as it’s one of the few non-traditional gaming experiences we have listed on our Play page. To learn more about how Codecademy was created, I spoke with co-creator Zach Sims over email.

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Exploring Korea’s long-lasting conflict through a game allegory

December 14, 2011 | by Jeff Ramos | Comments: 1
Daesung-dong village entranceDaesung-dong village entrance

For half a century Korea’s Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) has been a dividing line that affects millions of people on the peninsula. Explaining its importance to new generations is challenging. But imagine making a video game about it that is both complex and culturally sensitive.

Suzanna Samstag Oh was up for the challenge. After doing a stint as a Peace Corps volunteer in Korea in 1980-1, Suzanna decided to stay. Since then, she’s spent the last 30 years in the country where she is working for a large Korean energy company. After a chance encounter with Games for Change co-Founder Suzanne Seggerman, Suzanna’s boss suggested that his company start the Korean Games for Change chapter. Three years later, a landmark game called “Nanu Planet” was released that explores the DMZ’s history. (“Nanu” is the Korean word for “divided”.)

To learn more about how Nanu Planet uses allegory and historical information, where the inspiration came from, and some of the amazing developments in the past few weeks, we spoke with Suzanna… Continue reading >

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1st Annual Games for Change Latin America Festival, December 8 – 11

December 6, 2011 | by Jeff Ramos

Games for Change Latin America 2011

On December 8th through the 11th, Games for Change Latin America (English) will be hosting their first annual Latin America Festival (English)! This premiere event in São Paulo, Brazil will feature over 30 hours of content including lectures, presentations, roundtables, forums, workshops and demonstrations of Latin America’s most innovative games for change. This will be Brazil’s largest gathering to focus on the benefits of games and their use in education, health, entrepreneurship, civic society and cultural transformation. This free event will be held in several locations across São Paulo and will be streamed live to international audiences.

You can register for the free live stream here: Portuguese, English

Providing closing remarks will be our very own co-President Michelle Byrd. Among the many other international speakers and presenters, will be event sponsors AMD. They will be giving a presentation on “AMD Changing the Game“, their signature educational program designed for youth. Sharing how AMD uses games to promote STEM learning will be the Director of AMD Global Community Affairs, Ward Tisdale. Other highlights include Brian Alspach, Executive Vice President of E-Line Media , who will be delivering a workshop on game making tools and Robert Hawkins, Senior Education Technology Specialist at the World Bank, who will be discussing their game, Evoke, and their recent Brazilian partnership for Season 2 of the game.

On the festival’s closing night, the São Paulo Museum of Image and Sound (English) will host the Games for Change Latin America Awards 2011, an event to celebrate the most exciting games for change in Latin America. Among a series of musical performances and surprise guests, this closing night event will recognize games in three categories:

- Current Latin American games for change
- Educational gaming experiences
- New Ideas for future game creation and development

The Games for Change Latin America Festival 2011 is targeted at students, educators, social and cultural leaders, artists, independent and commercial game developers, those working in the public sector, as well as anyone interested in how games can affect society and culture in Latin America.

To learn more about the Festival and to register for the free live steam, visit the official Games for Change Latin America website (Portuguese, English).

Follow Games for Change Latin America on Twitter: @g4c_BR (English)

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