[British Columbia] Video Game Takes Aim at Poverty

from The Surrey Leader

By Jeff Nagel
Black Press

A new video game designed by an SFU graduate student takes aim at poverty by putting players in the shoes of a Vancouver homeless woman.

“Homeless: It’s No Game” is the brainchild of Terry Lavender, SFU Surrey’s communications manager and a West End resident who also studies in SFU’s school of interactive arts and technology.

The goal is for the homeless woman to survive 24 hours in Vancouver’s West End, scrounging for food, clothing and shelter, while dodging hazards like the police, drug addicts, irate drivers, aggressive dogs, speeding cyclists and surly tourists.

“Congratulations: you’re living in one of the most desirable cities in the world,” the instructions say. “Unfortunately it’s also one of the most unaffordable cities and you’re out on the street with no home to call your own.”

The game involves moving the woman around the simple 2-D map trying to forage for items and opportunities that will boost her esteem rather than reduce it. Her hunger and bladder levels also come into play.

Lavender said it’s part of his research project to see whether it’s possible to fuse computer games and social activism to make a difference.

“I’m studying whether a game can be both entertaining and activating at the same time,” he explained.

“Does good game play get in the way of the message? Or is good game play important to getting a message across?”

Video games are increasingly being put to new uses – by groups ranging from the U.S. Army to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) as awareness grows of the medium’s power, popularity and respectability.

“Often their games are poorly made and are just not fun to play,” Lavender said, adding he’s also out to learn if the reverse spells success.

Other serious activist games include Peacemaker, which is gaining acclaim in the Middle East for putting players in the role of Palestinian and Israeli leaders trying to negotiate peace. Another is called Darfur is Dying, where a woman in war-torn Sudan tries to get water for her village without being murdered or raped.

Lavender plans to refine Homeless further and then test it on local gamers to see whether their knowledge or attitudes on the issue change.

A previous game he designed early this year – St. Paul’s Invaders – was a shot at plans to move the downtown hospital and got criticism from health administrators who felt he trivialized the issue.

So far he hasn’t had a backlash to the Homeless game, but Lavender, a community activist, consulted homelessness advocates in advance.

“I realize it’s a sensitive issue,” he said. “The purpose of the game is to raise awareness. It’s not an attempt to oversimplify things or exploit the situation of the homeless.”

It’s not a money-making venture and Lavender has released the source code so other programmers can adapt it.

- You can access the game online at www.sfu.ca/~tlavende and he’ll also demonstrate it at SFU Surrey’s open house at Central City on Friday, Sept. 8.