Locally played : real-world games for stronger places and communities / Benjamin Stokes ; foreword by Tracy Fullerton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Stokes, Benjamin, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Games--Social aspects--United States.

Games.

Community development, Urban--United States.

Community development, Urban.

Community life--United States.

Community life.

Neighborhoods--United States.

Neighborhoods.

United States.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (288 pages).

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : The MIT Press, [2020]

Summary:

How games can make a real-world difference in communities when city leaders tap into the power of play for local impact. In 2016, city officials were surprised when Pokémon GO brought millions of players out into the public space, blending digital participation with the physical. Yet for local control and empowerment, a new framework is needed to guide the power of mixed reality and pervasive play. In Locally Played, Benjamin Stokes describes the rise of games that can connect strangers across zip codes, support the "buy local" economy, and build cohesion in the fight for equity. With a mix of high- and low-tech games, Stokes shows, cities can tap into the power of play for the good of the group, including healthier neighborhoods and stronger communities. Stokes shows how impact is greatest when games "fit" to the local community--not just in terms of culture, but at the level of group identity and network structure. By pairing design principles with a range of empirical methods, Stokes investigates the impact of several games, including Macon Money , where an alternative currency encouraged people to cross lines of socioeconomic segregation in Macon, Georgia; Reality Ends Here , where teams in Los Angeles competed to tell multimedia stories around local mythology; and Pokémon GO, appropriated by several cities to serve local needs through local libraries and open street festivals. Locally Played provides game designers with a model to strengthen existing networks tied to place and gives city leaders tools to look past technology trends in order to make a difference in the real world.

Contents:

Intro

Contents

Foreword

Acknowledgments

1: Introduction: A New Opportunity

The Social Basis of Local Games

The Right Kind of Game

A Definition: Local Community Games

Which Games? Two in Preview

Traction Depends on Local Fit

Avoiding "Games" of the Wrong Kind

How This Book Investigates Local Games

How to Read This Book

Part I

2: Social Exchange: Macon Money

Justine's Trajectory

Does It Count as a Local Game?

What Shapes Success?

3: Local Fit: A Framework for Stronger Communities

Four Roads to Community Strength

Local Fit: Impact through Better Alignment

Part II

4: Game Mechanics and Social Policy: Fit in Macon

Where the Data Comes From

Tracing the Social Mixing

New Frontier: Games as Socioeconomic Policy

More Fit to Come

5: Small Groups and Network Science: Reality Ends Here

A Game for Team Creativity

Tracing the Game

Looking Deeper: Network Methods

Counterpoint: A Failure to Adapt

6: Circulating across Platforms: Playful Movement, Stories, and Civic Data

Longstanding Investments

Case Study: Placemaking (and Keeping)

Contrasting Case: City Data and Mapping

From Method to Mainstream

7: Reclaiming Commercial Games: Cities Remix Pokémon GO

Comparing Cities and Tactics

Model 1: Street Festivals and Large Public Events

Philly Free Streets-and Networked Recruiting

Model 2: Neighborhood Hosts with Walking Tours

Model 3: Local Voice and Rewriting Game Content

Picking the Right Model

8: Sustainable Growth and Design: Embedding with Scale

Growing the Right Things

The Blinders of Mass Media

Adapting and Embedding

What If: "Locally Played" as an Invitation

Rethinking Cost as Investment

Adaptive Scaling: For Quality

Sharing Power in Design

Retaining a Playful Spirit

Notes

Chapter 1: Introduction

Chapter 2: Social Exchange

Chapter 3: Local Fit

Chapter 4: Game Mechanics and Social Policy

Chapter 5: Small Groups and Network Science

Chapter 6: Circulating across Platforms

Chapter 7: Reclaiming Commercial Games

Chapter 8: Sustainable Growth and Design

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

OCLC-licensed vendor bibliographic record.

ISBN:

9780262356930

0262356937

9780262356923

0262356929

OCLC:

1130311024