KEC

Summary Description: “Vocabulary of Disaster” currently has one play level – Sustainability. A prototype for a digital 3D game with audio.

You play as a ball that starts rolling from S and needs to get to the Y of “Sustainability.” You need to stay rolling on the word while being hindered by obstacles. Sometimes you are not a ball but a character from the animated film Green Noise. Throughout the path there are audio triggers that narrate reflections from experts and laypersons. We chose sustainability as it is a familiar word that can be re-examined and reinvested. The game can be installed in an art venue, as a projection with a custom made controller, where the game playthrough and audio is transmitted into the room. Details of the installation can vary to investigate further spatialization of games and collective play experience.

Research Method (sustainability level): 

In the research process for writing the game script we worked with the interview format. We approached two environmental scientists and interviewed them on the topic of sustainability. The first, Dr. Jobst Hitzing of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact (PIK), calculates the prospective that allows him to build models of the future on a supercomputer. His take on sustainability focused on the long term perspective, considering conditions for humans living on Earth 50.000 years from now. The second interview was with Dr. Manuel Rivera of the Research Institute for Sustainability (RIFS) Potsdam, for whom sustainability is a political concept and therefore in urgent need of new narratives. The third part was conducted as street interviews in Berlin, asking a range of questions relating to personal habits and understanding of sustainability. In all interviews, we were curious about the imaginary spaces the word sustainability can open up.