Games for Exploring Popular Geopolitics in Higher Education

There is growing recognition of the role of digital games in propagating hegemonic geopolitical imaginaries, especially regarding military-themed video games. However, such a focus has overlooked the purposeful design of digital games that challenge, disrupt, and critique popular understandings of geopolitics. This chapter outlines how digital games can be used in a higher education context to demonstrate how they can illustrate a counterpoint to dominant geopolitical narratives. Through their combination of narrative and playful structures, games can offer novel ways to challenge perceptions of geopolitical events and ideas. This chapter reviews existing literature on teaching geographical and geopolitical ideas with digital games and notes their pedagogical value. It outlines available resources, including Games for Change, an organisation that designs and hosts various games to promote social and political change. I draw on a specific case study example Unmanned ((Online version) [Video game]. Molleindustria, 2012). Designed by Molleindustria, this game focuses on the effects of drone warfare from the perspective of a drone pilot and draws on a number of salient themes and topics discussed in the teaching of popular geopolitics. Finally, the chapter offers practical advice, outlining critical considerations for incorporating digital games into a classroom, reflecting on developing students’ critical analysis of games, and discussing modes of assessment.