2019 Games for Change Festival

Games which provide players the opportunity to experience profound and deeply emotional experiences are often labeled as “empathy games.” While the goal of crafting these kinds of experiences is frequently to evoke feelings of connection, there remains significant moral and ethical considerations. Is asking someone to experience another person’s trauma permissible in the name of empathy? How are we thinking about the ethics around creating immersive, potentially traumatic experiences? This talk will delve into the psychological construct of empathy, discuss how empathy maps to the design process, and share core questions to consider when designing in the name of empathy.