CHIKYUCHI: In-person/remote game exhibition for climate change influence

Arguments for and against action in regards to climate change are deeply rooted in predetermined emotional responses, making it difficult to counter climate change denial armed only with objective data and scientific evidence. Interactive games, however, can engage people on an unconscious level, by promoting causes that align with the player's intrinsic motivations in the interaction. Instead of argumentation and data, we created a game exhibit that promotes the values that align with pro-climate action without explicitly persuading for climate action. We designed Chikyuchi based on the purpose of caring for a nonhuman entity that represents nature, engaging antagonistic viewpoints like climate change denial indirectly. The game uses the guise of a Tamagotchi to enable audiences to take pro-climate actions metaphorically in the interaction with the avatar. Audiences understand the game as communicating care-Taking in the context of the environment as opposed to a physical intervention in depletion of resource. They also collaborate in taking pro-social actions using the game instrument, sharing their purpose on a human level as opposed to debating about policy. © 2022 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).