We have been evaluating simulation games. Planet M.U.L.E. is a modern re-write of a classic four-player land settlement game, engineered for network play.
Learning Curve: 1 hour.
Suitability for a policy context: limited
Category Archives: Games
Kudos 2 Simulation Game — Simulation Game Evaluation
We have been evaluating policy simulation games, both for design ideas, and for a sense of whether they might be useful for real world policy processes. Kudos 2 allows the player to play out the life of of a twenty-something from the ages of 20–30. The modding facilities in Kudos 2 should allow, with weeks to months of development time, playing out the life of someone with a particular challenge (e.g., blindness), set of circumstances (e.g., foster-parenthood), or life-goal (e.g., socially-relevant employment).
Game learning Curve: 10–20 mins.
Development Curve (to modify for specialized applications): weeks to months.
SimCity — Policy Simulation Game Evaluation
Example of a green city built in SimCity
We have been evaluating policy simulation games, both for design ideas, and for a sense of whether they might be useful for real world policy processes. SimCity, as you might imagine from the title, allows the player to build and run a city. The player has considerably more freedom than might be available to a municipal politician, leading to a certain lack of realism. This article discusses the 2013 version of SimCity, with the GlassBox simulation engine.
Learning Curve: 10–30 mins
Balance of the Planet — Simulation Game Evaluation
We have been evaluating policy simulation games, both for design ideas, and for a sense of whether they might be useful for real world policy processes. Balance of the Planet is supposed to allow players to understand problems of a global nature, but is still under development.
Social Innovation Simulation 