Linking socio-economic metabolism models and simulation games: Reflections on benefits and challenges

Simulation models of socio-economic metabolisms (SEM) are increasingly used to address questions regarding environmental issues. SEM studies often focus on target audiences such as researchers and decision-makers by means of scientific articles, reports, and oral presentations. In this contribution, we study the linkage of SEM models and simulation games (SGs) (i) to widen the audience of SEM research to include the general public, who, through their lifestyles, contribute to the studied environmental issues, and (ii) to address the different audiences by means of interaction tools. We illustrate the link through a case study, the postfossilCities SG. Based on the case study, existing SGs, and literature, we identified that linking SEM models with SGs can facilitate (1) the accessibility of SEM models to wider audiences, (2) the communication and understanding of systems with complex dynamics, such as nonlinear behavior, through tools that trigger experiences and emotions, (3) the consideration of actors’ dimension of physical systems, and (4) the robustness of SGs by having mass- and energy-balance consistent representations of physical systems. Despite these benefits, linking SEM models and SGs is also bound to challenges, such as (1) the integration of approaches from different disciplines, (2) the high demand on time and financial resources, and (3) the balance between simplification and complexity. In order to facilitate the link between SEM models and SGs, and thus exploit the mentioned benefits, it is important to set-up connections to game-related communities and communities with long tradition of using SGs, and use existing game development methods.