Researching for a game that teaches empathy - Suggestions please :)

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Rebekah Miller

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Jan 4, 2017, 4:39:06 PM1/4/17
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Hello,

I'm a creative consultant (but not a game developer) working for a large nonprofit that helps citizens of Los Angeles by funding nonprofits in three areas, homelessness, youth education and financial stability. The organization is looking to create a game to evoke and teach empathy.  There is an online type of game called Playspent that was created that sparked this idea. http://playspent.org This game is focused more on financial stability and homelessness. 

Are there any games out there focused on teaching empathy or based on empathy models? Looking for some examples to spark ideas and see what is out there. I really liked That Dragon Cancer http://www.thatdragoncancer.com/#home 

Suggestions for companies to develop this? 

Would one work with several different companies on different components of the game or a one stop shop company that takes it from ideation to finish? Suggested companies? Possibly looking to work with a local business in LA but not set on it. 


Thank you for your time! 

Rebekah 

Jarrad

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Jan 5, 2017, 12:54:38 PM1/5/17
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Hi Rebekah,

At https://conversationsforhealth.com/ you can find a game for home visitors called Building Family Bonds and one for parents of young children called Calm Parents, Healthy Kids. Both include the teaching and practice of empathy. At https://kognito.com/ you can find more sims by Kognito that include empathy as part of their instruction and play demo versions of them.

Winston WOLFF

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Jan 5, 2017, 12:54:38 PM1/5/17
to Rebekah Miller, Games for Change
Designing a great game, its rules and how it feels to play, is very different the software engineering aspect of programming the game. Some great game designers have built or are employed by companies that have good programmers but I think there are many game designers that are freelance, and many good game development shops that have excellent engineers but lack game design ability. So I'd say focus on the game design first, have one or more designers build a paper prototypes until you like the play experience, and then find engineers to build it.

—Winston
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Mark Chen

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Jan 6, 2017, 5:04:08 PM1/6/17
to Rebekah Miller, Games for Change
Hi Rebekah,

One company comes to mind, Kognito, who have been making games for health that focus on empathy. I'd guess working with a company that can do the whole game would be ideal, but they may need outside SMEs or critical game designers to review their designs...

There's a bunch of games about different life experiences that may be good to check out: Dys4ia, Lim, Depression Quest, Cart Life, etc. Also, in the past couple of years, I've played two board games that cover homelessness or living in poverty. One was Ghetto, created in the late 60s, and the other was during last years' NASAGA conference called A Paycheck Away.

I was down in LA a couple of years ago, working on increasing agency and empathy through games, as well, by getting south LA high school kids to make games about their lives. I attempted to run a game jam for middle school homeless kids, but the project fell through. :(
Awesome that you're doing this!

mark

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You see before you Mark Chen, PhD. Above his head appears a label that changes every time you look at it between "Games Scholar," "PT Lecturer at UW Bothell," "Director, Pepperdine Gameful Design Lab," and "Accidental Hero and Layabout."
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John Faig

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Aug 12, 2019, 11:45:38 AM8/12/19
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I am a newbie to this group and am picking up on this old thread.  @Rebekah, were you able to build any games around empathy.  This is a major interest of mine.

JDF


On Wednesday, January 4, 2017 at 4:39:06 PM UTC-5, Rebekah Miller wrote:

madsen...@gmail.com

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Aug 13, 2019, 1:11:10 PM8/13/19
to John Faig, Games for Change

Our studio has created similar games for other clients. If you are interested in hiring a studio to create a game centered around empathy contact me at the email address below.

 

 

Robert Madsen
Studio Director/CEO, SynaptixGames
http://SynaptixGames.com
300 Main St, Suite 204, Grand Junction, CO 81501
(970) 281-5805
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kurt squire

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Aug 13, 2019, 1:11:10 PM8/13/19
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Robert M at Play

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Aug 13, 2019, 1:11:11 PM8/13/19
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I'm creating an empathy game about homelessness. Rebekah, what happened with your project? John, what is your interest & what are you doing?

Robert

David Langendoen

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Aug 13, 2019, 1:20:29 PM8/13/19
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There was a good article on this on EdSurge recently:

https://www.edsurge.com/news/2019-08-05-can-virtual-simulations-teach-a-human-skill-like-empathy

My studio makes a series of games that teach historical empathy (mission-us.org) and we've had great outcomes.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/gamesforchange/CAERDbjAozUS-JD2oBLt2VtAu_jk0PdapjkAxFFyiFKAqk9i4Dw%40mail.gmail.com.
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Karen Schrier Shaenfield

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Aug 14, 2019, 12:19:09 PM8/14/19
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Hi there everyone,

In case you want some research-based design practices for creating games for empathy, compassion, here are some recent (free) resources from the past couple of years:

Designing Ourselves whitepaper on identity, games, and empathy, which has a chart in the back on some games to check out:
(full disclosure: written by me, as a fellow for the ADL)

Fun little game creation guide with quick tips on making games for empathy:
(written by me, as a fellow for the ADL)

Whitepaper on empathy and games:
(co-authored by Matt Farber and me) 

Literary Safari list of empathy games:
(created by Literary Safari & Friends, with a brief preface by me) 

Open Questions for Empathy and Games (part of the CLS proceedings), should be downloadable at, and then search the proceedings:
(co-authored by me and Matt Farber)

I've also got some other papers that are less free so let me know if any of you are interested and I can share.

Take care, Karen 

Jonathon Rios

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Aug 19, 2019, 12:27:45 PM8/19/19
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I believe a hugely successful game called "Papers, Please" can be an effective tool in generating empathy. "Papers, Please" is hugely effective in tone, player choice, and theming. I recommend you click the link to watch the trailer to gain a sense of what the game is about. I can not explain its genius from words alone.

"Papers, Please" actually shares themes of homelessness and financial stability. Understanding (by playing) how this game can better show how to provide your own players with agency in those difficult ideas.

Good Luck on your search!

Angela Wyman

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Aug 19, 2019, 12:27:45 PM8/19/19
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Outstanding job on those ADL game creation guides - thank you for sharing those resources. Am interested in your less free papers, too, if possible. 

thanks, 
Angela Wyman

Winston WOLFF

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Aug 22, 2019, 10:28:21 AM8/22/19
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I saw an amazing game on empathy some years back that demonstrated what it was like to be black and walk down the street. But I don't remember its name. Does anybody know it? It was a text game--black screen with white text describing each situation. The player walks down the street and reads descriptions of people giving funny looks, crossing to the other side of the street as they approach you, people locking their car doors as you approach, stern warnings from the police. It was incredibly convincing on how it must be frustrating to be black in the USA.

Anybody remember what this game was called or how to find it?

—Winston
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Sam Potasznik

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Aug 22, 2019, 11:55:53 AM8/22/19
to Winston WOLFF, Games for Change
And a famous counterpoint to the notion of "empathy games" which, for me, raises the important questions of who gets to make these games and who are they for: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/mgbwpv/empathy-games-dont-exist





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O'Donnell, Dean M

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Aug 22, 2019, 12:27:14 PM8/22/19
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I believe the game you're talking about is &maybetheywon'tkillyou by Akira Thompson out of UCSC?

The game itself seems to be gone, but here's Leigh Alexander's article about it.

From: gamesfo...@googlegroups.com <gamesfo...@googlegroups.com> on behalf of Winston WOLFF <winsto...@gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, August 19, 2019 1:57 PM

To: Games for Change <gamesfo...@googlegroups.com>
Subject: [EXT]Re: [G4C] Re: Researching for a game that teaches empathy - Suggestions please :)
 
I saw an amazing game on empathy some years back that demonstrated what it was like to be black and walk down the street. But I don't remember its name. Does anybody know it? It was a text game--black screen with white text describing each situation. The player walks down the street and reads descriptions of people giving funny looks, crossing to the other side of the street as they approach you, people locking their car doors as you approach, stern warnings from the police. It was incredibly convincing on how it must be frustrating to be black in the USA.

Anybody remember what this game was called or how to find it?

—Winston

> On Aug 16, 2019, at 5:54 PM, Angela Wyman <angw...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Outstanding job on those ADL game creation guides - thank you for sharing those resources. Am interested in your less free papers, too, if possible.
>
> thanks,
> Angela Wyman
>
>
>
> On Wednesday, August 14, 2019 at 12:19:09 PM UTC-4, Karen wrote:
> Hi there everyone,
>
> In case you want some research-based design practices for creating games for empathy, compassion, here are some recent (free) resources from the past couple of years:
>
> Designing Ourselves whitepaper on identity, games, and empathy, which has a chart in the back on some games to check out:
> (full disclosure: written by me, as a fellow for the ADL)
>
> Fun little game creation guide with quick tips on making games for empathy:
> (written by me, as a fellow for the ADL)
>
> Whitepaper on empathy and games:
> (co-authored by Matt Farber and me)
>
> Literary Safari list of empathy games:
> (created by Literary Safari & Friends, with a brief preface by me)
>
> Open Questions for Empathy and Games (part of the CLS proceedings), should be downloadable at, and then search the proceedings:
> (co-authored by me and Matt Farber)
>
> I've also got some other papers that are less free so let me know if any of you are interested and I can share.
>
> Take care, Karen
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google
> Groups "Games for Change" group.
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> 
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John Misak

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Aug 22, 2019, 1:29:43 PM8/22/19
to Sam Potasznik, Winston WOLFF, Games for Change

Interesting article. It got me thinking.

 

It does, in effect, raise doubt that empathy itself is possible through anything other than lived experience. At least, that’s my take.

Winston WOLFF

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Aug 22, 2019, 1:45:31 PM8/22/19
to John Misak, Sam Potasznik, Games for Change
> On Aug 22, 2019, at 10:28 AM, John Misak <jmi...@nyit.edu> wrote:
>
> Interesting article. It got me thinking.
>
> It does, in effect, raise doubt that empathy itself is possible through anything other than lived experience. At least, that’s my take.

Yes a very interesting article, and I'm very glad she makes her point. I agree that we cannot completely understand another's situation by playing a game about it. But we should still be trying to empathize with others, and games are a good way to build empathy.


> From: gamesfo...@googlegroups.com <gamesfo...@googlegroups.com> On Behalf Of Sam Potasznik
> Sent: Thursday, August 22, 2019 11:38 AM
> To: Winston WOLFF <winsto...@gmail.com>
> Cc: Games for Change <gamesfo...@googlegroups.com>
> Subject: Re: [G4C] Re: Researching for a game that teaches empathy - Suggestions please :)
>
> And a famous counterpoint to the notion of "empathy games" which, for me, raises the important questions of who gets to make these games and who are they for: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/mgbwpv/empathy-games-dont-exist

Also a good point--the games we build will incorporate our own views which are not universal. Players should be skeptical of the viewpoints in games as they are with any opinion. But games are immersive, which makes it hard to be objective and critical of the games viewpoint.

—Winston

John Misak

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Aug 22, 2019, 3:00:47 PM8/22/19
to Winston WOLFF, Sam Potasznik, Games for Change
Agree 100%


Dr. John Misak 
Assistant Professor,
Director of Technical Communication
English | New York Institute of Technology
nyit.edu 

Tel: 516.686.1469 |
jmi...@nyit.edu | Twitter: @ProfMisak
Balding House | Room 103 | Old Westbury Campus 

David Langendoen

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Aug 22, 2019, 3:00:47 PM8/22/19
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There is no comparing to lived experience... that said:

Is the goal of empathy games to provide the equivalent empathetic experience to real life (and that they should be critiqued through that lens)?

If we agree that that isn't possible, then can they still serve a valuable purpose, such as "scaffolding" the practice of empathy generally and, more deeply, within a specific context? In other words, by providing the experience in the link below, does that help the player understand the issues that an LGBTQ person is facing better and be more prepared to engage in a conversation in real life? Or are there real risks of creating mis-conceptions and doing more harm than good?

I would say that the answer to all of those is yes. So the deeper work of how a game is created and designed needs to be unpacked to determine its value in creating the opportunities for real empathy in real life (and not either a shallow/presumptuous "oh, I totally get it now!" or coming away with a real mis-understanding).

Emily Treat

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Aug 22, 2019, 3:00:47 PM8/22/19
to Winston WOLFF, Games for Change
I think you mean this Injustice project from Carnegie Mellon:


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John Misak

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Aug 22, 2019, 3:10:23 PM8/22/19
to David Langendoen, gamesfo...@googlegroups.com

Well put, David. I think sometimes we look for tremendous leaps when simple steps can do just as well.

 

No, games (nor movies, books, interviews, anything, really) cannot seamlessly convey empathy and we should not expect them to. But such avenues can (with the right hand on the wheel) convey glimpses that might impart a sense of understanding.

 

Empathetic games just may be a good starting point. Of course, that’s still up for debate.

 

 

Dr. John Misak 
Assistant Professor,

Director of Technical Communication
English | New York Institute of Technology
nyit.edu 

Tel: 516.686.1469 |
jmi...@nyit.edu | Twitter: @ProfMisak
Balding House | Room 103 | Old Westbury Campus 

   

 

Belen Cañadas

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Mar 5, 2020, 10:25:05 AM3/5/20
to Games for Change

Hello,
Do you know about some game like Spent or focused on empathy in spanish? Thank you!

Belen Cañadas

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Mar 5, 2020, 10:25:05 AM3/5/20
to Games for Change
Hello,

Do you know about some game like Spent or focused on empathy in spanish? Thank you!

El miércoles, 4 de enero de 2017, 18:39:06 (UTC-3), Rebekah Miller escribió:

Rudresha M

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Mar 10, 2020, 9:07:39 AM3/10/20
to Belen Cañadas, Games for Change

Hello,

 

Please find suggestions from our end below:

 

Depression Quest

- A game about the experience of having depression

- https://youtu.be/IUsGXfqHWTQ?t=149https://youtu.be/IUsGXfqHWTQ?t=149

 

Dys4ia

- A game dealing with the experience of undergoing hormone replacement therapy

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlSJ3KV_KxU

 

Papo and Yo

- A game about child abuse

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkrjby0lKRE

 

Darfur is Dying

- This online game is based on the genocide in Sudan

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gehaZkV8034

 

This war is mine

- A game on the victims of a war

- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55TmXDuUL0I

 

 

Papers please

- A game about an immigration officer and how you can make decision on who enters the country and who doesn't.

- https://youtu.be/kMC-r0e_Ly4?t=34https://youtu.be/kMC-r0e_Ly4?t=34

 

Please let me know if you need anything else from our end!


Best Regards,

Rudresha

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Miguel Molina Cecchetti

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Mar 10, 2020, 2:01:40 PM3/10/20
to Rudresha M, Belen Cañadas, Games for Change
Hi Belén,

Our Clinical Sense scenarios are written to help  students and practicing physicians improve their clinical skills as well as their patient interaction skills. Take a close look at our psychiatry scenarios. 

As for Spanish, about 1/4 of our 100+ scenarios are in Spanish. Those are only available on the mobile app version of Clinical Sense. 


Best, 

Miguel

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