'Serious Policy' - political game is part of a new breed of Serious Gaming

At the Fabian Conference on democracy Ed Miliband MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office, set out a vision for democratic renewal which involves “understanding the ways in which people can get involved and being willing to undertake experiments in democracy as we seek to engage people”. (8 Sep 2007)

In response to this 'Serious Gaming' specialist Playgen have produced a political game called 'Serious Policy.' The Serious Policy game aims to demonstrate how political processes and decision making can be brought to life in an interesting way through a virtual world, whilst highlighting to players the importance of public engagement in the decision-making process.

Serious Policy players are on a mission to win Treasury funding for a new project and along the way can irritate Alistair Darling, get advice from Tony Blair and get congratulated by Gordon Brown. Serious Policy also has a variety of detailed game scenes including a virtual Members’ Lobby, a simulated Treasury and a digital Number 10.

The Serious Policy Game took PlayGen Ltd only two weeks to make and cost less than £10K to develop. As business looks to virtual worlds to help with everything from cost effective meetings through to innovative training, Serious Policy is a good reminder that Gaming and Virtual Worlds can be creatively used for serious business and education as well as for leisure.

www.seriouspolicy.com
Ed Miliband's Fabian Conference speech