Gaming the Real World

Can video games transform the world? As cities worldwide grapple with the challenges of population growth due to increased urbanization, there’s a question of whether video games can be utilized to engage residents, particularly the youth, in the planning and improvement of their own urban environments. Nowadays, public spaces and entire cities are being conceptualized, designed, and interacted with through gaming. This trend of ‘civic gamification’ is democratizing city architecture and urban planning. Cities have become the epicenter of digital innovation, sparking widespread discussions about their future development. We explore the journey of three gaming companies at the intersection of urban planning and gaming: Lydia Winters from Mojang, the creators of Minecraft; Paradox Interactive, known for Cities: Skylines; and José Sanches with his indie game Block’hood. What will our cities look like in the next 20 to 100 years?