FableVision

🏆 The Wilson Center’s Serious Games Initiative is pleased to announce that The Plastic Pipeline, a serious game produced in collaboration with the Wilson Center | China Environment Forum and FableVision Studios, won two awards! The first award, is “Best Game for Government Audiences” from the Serious Games Showcase and Competition Europe in Bristol, England (Ruddy Nice). The second, is “Best Game in Environmental Impact” from the Games for Change Festival in New York City. 📖 To learn more about the awards and The Plastic Pipeline, read our blog post about the announcement 📖 ➡ https://bit.ly/4dLMmtL Kristen Marcinek, Sonja R. O'Brien, Elizabeth M H Newbury, John Matuszewski

We won! The Plastic Pipeline took home the inaugural award at Games for Change for Best in Environmental Impact. I am honored and humbled. This is the acceptance speech I wish I had had time for (or prepared!): This award shows how much global interest there is in using games to help spark change for the environment. There were submissions from over 50(?) countries, with this category receiving 17% of the submissions for the festival alone. Between this landslide of submissions and such high-level work as the UN's Play for the Planet, game developers are really stepping up for the environment. But this year, games were especially stepping up for oceans. All three finalists, The Plastic Pipeline, Loddlenaut, and Wake: Tales from the Aqualab focus on our oceans and UN SDG 14, Life Below Water. I am hopeful this is part of a larger trend; the oceans need us. Our own journey in this game and research started with my dear colleague Jennifer Turner pointing out, as she often does, that the US and China are number one....in plastic pollution. Currently, there are 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic waste in the ocean, and at least 1 million tons of plastic enters the ocean every year. Recycling and other forms of consumer level action are important, but are just the cusp of solutions that can stem this tide. There is so much that can be done before, and after, consumer use of single-use plastics. We wanted to make these solutions accessible, un-black boxing what policy wonks are discussing for those who are curious but may not already be part of the conversation. Our team was diligent in the policy research that is the backbone for this game, hoovering up solutions from across sectors and countries to make a game with impact. It seems to be working. In a pre and post test, we are seeing self-efficacy and knowledge about solutions increase, both critical to lowering that barrier of entry into environmental policy. When doing work in serious games and trying to get these sort of impacts, it's important to remember what you find fun. I took inspiration from a childhood of playing Where in the World is Carmen San Diego and a pandemic of playing Animal Crossing for the feel of the game, and a team of storytellers to make policy come to life. But we also took a critical approach to making the game accessible for non-gamers. FableVision is completely capable of a game with all the latest bells and whistles, but we wanted a game that could be played on a phone or Chromebook, and wasn't daunting technologically for any experience level. This is a global issue, and everyone deserves to understand what is at stake. This award is an honor, as is the recognition from a community of people inspired to leverage the most powerful medium for change and impact. This will help guide us as we look to expand the game, to "level up" with new research surrounding policies like the global plastic treaty. There is more work to be done, but let's make it fun.

🎉 Drumroll, please! 🎉 We are thrilled to announce the finalists for the 2024 G4C Awards, celebrating the year's most groundbreaking games and immersive experiences that champion social impact, foster learning, and push the boundaries of interactive media. 🏆 Through a rigorous evaluation process, our expert judges have selected 3 finalists in each of the 11 competitive award categories, including the debut of the Best Environmental Engagement category. These games exemplify the power of social impact gaming, driving positive change and raising awareness through the power of play. Join us on June 27 at the live Awards ceremony as we honor these incredible titles, with the amazing Anjali Bhimani as our host! 🌟 🏆The G4C2024 Awards finalists include: 💫 Best in Innovation A Highland Song - inkle Stay Alive, My Son Chapter 1 & 2 - UME Studios Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical - Summerfall Studios 🏛️ Best in Civics We. The Refugees: Ticket to Europe - Act Zero Sibel's Journey - Food for Thought Media Headlines and High Water - Field Day Lab 🌍 Best in Environmental Impact Loddlenaut - Moon Lagoon Wake: Tales from the Aqualab - Field Day Lab The Plastic Pipeline - FableVision 💪 Best in Health & Wellness Teach Your Monster Adventurous Eating - Teach Your Monster So Exhausting - Open Concept Soul Paint - Improvive 💥 Best in Impact Headlines and High Water - Field Day Lab Stay Alive, My Son Chapter 1 & 2 - UME Studios American Arcadia - Out of the Blue Games 🧠 Best in Learning Outbreak READY 2!: Thisland in Crisis - &ranj Give As We Grow - FableVision Headlines and High Water - Field Day Lab 🕹️ Best in XR MLK: Now Is The Time - Flight School Studio, TIME Studios, Meta VR For Good Origen - Presencias Maya: The Birth of a Superhero - Just Another Production Company ✍️ Best Narrative Torn Away - perelesoq Stay Alive, My Son Chapter 1 & 2 - UME Studios American Arcadia - Out of the Blue Games 🧑🎓 Best Student Project It's Ukraine - Not a Game - Various Students Stop and Breathe - One Must Imagine Games PacaPomo - Saturday Boys 🎮 Best Gameplay A Highland Song - inkle Chants of Sennaar - Rundisc Jusant - DON'T NOD Congratulations to all the finalists! Don't miss the #G4C2024 Awards Ceremony on June 27, where we'll reveal the winners and celebrate other amazing people, organizations, and games making a difference. 🏅 Secure your spot: https://bit.ly/G4C2024_Tix  Learn more: https://lnkd.in/eUA7jQNM #G4CAwards #SocialImpact #Gaming #VideoGames