The winners of the USC Annenberg Center for Public Diplomacy to develop multiplayer games that promote cooperation and mutual understanding will be announced shortly. This is far-out stuff, but it's a natural: after all, the best MMOs require cooperation among large teams to accomplish complex raids and other objectives.
Eric Brown and Asi Burak think a strategy game, of all things, could help forge a new level of understanding between Israelis and Palestinians.
Their game, known as "Peacemaker," is all about tearing down decades-old walls of mistrust between the two peoples, all the while turning one of the best-understood video game dynamics on its head. In the game, players assume leadership responsibilities on both sides of the conflict as they face real-life issues, such as diplomatic negotiations and military attacks, that divide the camps.
"It's a strategy game that's typical in form," said Eric Brown, a graduate student in interactive educational design at Carnegie-Mellon University, "except we inverted the model, so it's not a war game. The point is to make peace with the other side…"
In addition to "Peacemaker," finalists include "Hydro Hyjinks," which is intended to get people talking about the environment and international water distribution; "Exchanging Cultures," which creates a public space where people from anywhere in the world can trade virtual artifacts from their respective cultures; and "Global Kids," a concept game that will eventually provide virtual hands-on workshops for kids and that's designed to facilitate discussion and cross-cultural meetings.
(Disclosure: I have accepted a Fulbright Chair at the Annenberg Center for 2006/2007)
