After the Eruption: Tackling Complex Sustainability Issues Through a Role-Playing Simulation

Abstract

Developing strategies to sustainably manage landscapes to meet environmental, social, and economic goals is an increasing concern in a world experiencing anthropogenic global change. Here we evaluate how our game Resilience: After The Eruption, a digital role-playing simulation game, helps us answer the question of how to design serious games to facilitate understanding of complex sustainability issues. In a simulation of the aftermath of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens, players of Resilience: After The Eruption perform resource management and engage in stakeholder collaboration. Through pre- and post-gameplay surveys, we assessed user experience and whether players learn about the complexities of the natural and human phenomena that affect post-disturbance ecological recovery processes and experience the challenges of multiple-stakeholder cooperation. Players showed an overall increase in knowledge that corresponded to the desired learning objectives and generally reported a positive user experience. Our results support the idea that role-playing simulation games like Resilience: After the Eruption can be a useful tool for educating and training individuals on complex sustainability issues.