<< I'm interested in developing a video game about conflict
resolution/transformation. My sense is that the market is
inundated w/ hip violent games and there is nothing similar
that promotes conflict resolution/transformation.
:
How do I go about it? >>


Look up "serious games" in a search engine and you'll get a lot more
information about the segment of the industry that deals with this kind of
game. For example, there's actually a yearly conference, The Serious
Games Summit.

It's not that game developers want to make violent games so that society
can be more violent. It's that people buy games that entertain them, and
there are many proven game play mechanisms that happen to work in settings
of varying amounts of violence, or even no violence at all.


For the mechanism of shooting a projectile, the easiest way to do it is
with some kind of hero using a gun or blaster on an enemy. The
consequence/reward is usually that the enemy is killed or obliterated.

If you break this down into the objectives of the game design, you can
choose a different kind of weapon, a different kind of projectile, an
appropriate target, and the relevant rewards/consequences for hitting the
target.

Since it's a video game, all of this needs to involve some amount of
"action" or else it'll be boring. Because it's a game, the player needs
to see a result for improving their skills, and needs ways to explore new
strategies.


I found an example of this in a "Rescue Heroes" game where you put out
forest fires. This satisfies the need for a weapon (a fire hose), a
projectile (water), an enemy (fire), and a result (saving the forest).

The player's improved skill could be for better aim, and saving more
forest acreage, and preventing property damage. It could also involve
doing the job with fewer resources such as a limited amount of water, or
it could involve super weapons like aircraft equipped with tanks (the
"Rescue Heroes" game did not have any of these).

I think there's already an award-winning game called "Re-Mission" that
involves zapping cancerous cells, which satisfies the same game mechanics.

There are other game mechanisms such as resource management and
simulations which may more easily fit the requirements for a serious game.


When the execution of a game design is stimulating and compelling, you
might have a successful product release on your hands. Success can be
measured as money, and also by how many new people have increased their
awareness about the message.

Unfortunately, some game makers are so caught up in their message that
their game has no general appeal. In other words, they're "preaching to
the choir" and their few customers end up being the people who already
believed in the cause. This does not make for a successful product
release and you can't recoup your development cost.

When a game publisher decides to pour millions into game development, they
take all of this into consideration, and most "serious games" do not make
the cut.

Instead, serious games can be funded by private funds and grants from
foundations that are not necessarily seeking a positive commercial outcome
in return for their investment.


+pravin