ISBN: 978-989-8533-91-3 © 2019

EMPATHETIC GAMES: MAKING MEANINGFUL

EXPERIENCES FOR OTHERNESS PROMOTION

Daniel de Sant’anna Martins1, Alexandre Magalhães Rangel2 and Joshua Kritz2

1
Escola Técnica Estadual Cícero Dias - NAVE Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil
2
Colégio Estadual José Leite Lopes - NAVE Rio, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

ABSTRACT
Empathy is the ability or attitude of putting yourself in someone else's shoes, using imagination to understand their actions
and motivations. It is the art of understanding the other's feelings and thus, knowing their real needs and desires. Our
empathic capacity allows us to identify the way or the learning path of the others, and enables the teacher-facilitator to
guide their actions based on this understanding (KRZNARIC, 2015). It facilitates and promotes collaboration between
people, leading them to build projects and realities together, as it assists in understanding behaviors, ideas, dreams, values
and needs. As games are a medium or even a language that can serve as a powerful tool to promote meaningful experiences,
the present work studies the conjugation of these with empathy, investigating the advent of a new genre or class of digital
games: the empathetic games. The investigation of its possibilities is still expressed in the case study of a didactic practice
guided by project based learning methodology (PBL), in a context of technical high school technical development of games.

KEYWORDS
Empathy, Education, Project Based Learning, Game Development, Empathetic Games

1. INTRODUCTION
The World Development Report 2019 - The Changing Nature of Work, promoted by the World Bank, shows
above all that it is with young people and children that "the main challenge is to equip them with skills that
they will need to use regardless of the nature of the work of tomorrow, (this includes) above all the ability to
solve problems and exercise critical judgment, as well as interpersonal skills such as empathy and the spirit of
collaboration," says World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim.
Empathy is one of the conditions or interactions between teacher-learning facilitators and learners, so that
there is a creative trust environment that enables a true "freedom to learn" experience (ROGERS, 1977).
In total, for this type of learning to occur, six are the conditions described by Rogers (1977), namely:
a) confrontation with a real problem; b) trust in the human organism; c) teacher authenticity; d) acceptance;
e) empathy; f) provision of resources ".
Speaking of experiences, games are, so far, one of the most effective tools for producing meaning.
Zimmerman and Salen tell us that "a game is a system in which players engage in an artificial, rules-based
conflict that implies a quantifiable outcome." (SALEN & ZIMMERMAN, 2012). In this context, game design
activity directs this result since "design is the process by which a designer creates a context to be found by a
participant, from which the meaning emerges" (SALEN & ZIMMERMAN, 2012).
Based on this, the development of an empathic game project was proposed for students of NAVE - Núcleo
Avançado em Educação (Advanced Nucleus in Education), a high school educational program of Oi Futuro,
in partnership with Rio de Janeiro and Pernambuco government, transforming the particular school in full time
and integrated school with technical-professional courses in the area of digital game programming, powered
by CESAR - Centro de Estudos e Sistemas Avançados do Recife (Recife Center for Advanced Studies and
Systems) - a research and innovation institute - aiming to promote a significant experience whose subject matter
is related to a difficult theme for empathy promotion in its users. It became clear after the development of the
project that the experience of developing a game with this premise, promoted changes not only in its end users,
but in students and faculty.

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International Conferences Interfaces and Human Computer Interaction 2019; Game and Entertainment Technologies 2019;
and Computer Graphics, Visualization, Computer Vision and Image Processing 2019

2. DEFINING EMPATHY
Empathy enters as a powerful tool, not as an emotional, affectionate, and vague feeling, but as a transforming
attitude, capable of promoting a revolution in the relationships between teachers, apprentices, communities,
and institutions. This is what Krznaric (2015) says when teaching. Canada, New Zealand, Germany and Britain
have hundreds of thousands of learners benefiting through the Roots of Empathy program. This Canadian
program, created in 1995, is an empathic teaching method for five- to twelve-year-olds with a baby as a teacher.
Trainees should observe a baby and try to understand their emotional relationships with the world and with
others, including their parents through an empathic practice (Krznaric, 2015). The results of several studies
have shown that the program was able to reduce bullying practices, stimulate cooperation, improve the learner's
relationship with his parents and raise his grades (Krznaric, 2015).
Child education specialist and program creator Mary Gordon believes “that empathy education is vital to
children's well-being and a cornerstone of emotional intelligence," and continues her statement that she is
essential in the formation of " global citizens "capable of solving the world's problems," from child poverty to
armed violence "(Krznaric, 2015). These are also objectives that are present in the Report to UNESCO of the
International Commission on Education for the 21st Century and the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Empathic people have what Krznaric (2015) calls the "creative spirit," a sort of curiosity that encourages
research from the other person's point of view on the world, causing the researcher to develop new thoughts
and perspectives through interaction (Krznaric, 2015). This creative spirit can certainly aid in the development
of skills for the 21st century and facilitate learning.
The Universities of Eastern Finland, Jyväskylä and Turku jointly conduct research on the use of empathy
by teachers. The studies revealed that "empathic teachers promote children's motivation and the development
of academic skills, such as reading, writing and arithmetic skills" (University of Eastern Finland, 2015). The
Finnish First Steps research has further shown that empathic relationships and interactions between apprentices
and teachers are more relevant to learning than physical structures or the provision of educational materials.
The conclusion of the research is that the practice of empathy is capable of increasing motivation for learning
(University of Eastern Finland, 2015).
Krznaric (2015) gives some tips on how we can learn to develop an empathic practice, namely:
1) Understand that we can expand our empathy; 2) Recognize the perspective, humanity and individuality of
the other as true; 3) Do not judge the cultural experiences of others, but explore them; 4) Exercising "radical
listening" and curiosity, being authentic in relation to the other; 5) Transport yourself imaginatively to the
minds of others with the help of tangible artifacts; 6) Use empathy, to understand others.
This skill is particularly useful in game design and development activities, as in a game we’re trying to
deliver an experience, based on a player specific profiles with needs and personal interests.

3. SERIOUS GAMES
Serious games also known as games with purpose, represent a category of games. We then have a definition
of serious game: "What separates serious games from the rest [of games] is the focus on a specific and
intentional learning outcome to achieve serious, measurable, and continuous performance and behaviour
changes." (Carryberry, 2008) In other words, these games have a purpose beyond entertainment. They seek to
use all the power of this media to provide more than fun, conveying knowledge, learning and empathy. Other
authors agree with this association of serious games to an educational objective and clarifying that the term
serious does not go back to a dull or demotivating game, but rather reflects only the purpose of the game created
(Michael; Chen, 2005).
The Serious Games theme is not relatively new, the 1970s being considered one of the first times it was
mentioned (ABT, 1970), being defined as games that are committed to the educational and training character.
With the development of digital technologies there is an emergence of digital players. Greater access to games
in a personal environment has made it possible to create serious digital games that can reach a much larger
number of people than analog ones. These new possibilities have led to a great increase in serious games studies
and their importance.

3.1 Classification of Serious Games

The growth of serious games in both studies and in quantity of games leads to efforts to classify these. There
are several classifications in the literature, generally according to the purpose present in the games. The

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proposal of an example classification is, to take into account the main objectives (purpose) of the game, used
media, applied technologies, gender, area, expected impact, transmitted values, results of abilities or by the
type of behavioral change (Connolly et al., 2012).
Even with these classification efforts there is still no one widely accepted by serious game scholars.
However, it is possible to recognize similarities in various classifications with respect to the purpose of the
game. Common names given to various forms of serious games are: Newsgames, Training and simulation,
Persuasive, Organizational dynamic, Games for health, Art games and Militainment (Edgar Alves, 2013).

3.2 Empathetic Games

There isn't yet no consensus on the classification of this new genre - or whether it is in fact a new genre - but
what really matters is that empathic games figure as a significant tool in promoting alterity between people and
in solving other issues associated with empathy. According to the Game designer Mary Flanagan, in 2018
annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. “Normally, we tackle the world’s biggest
problems through treaties, through policy, through careful laws, through design, but history keeps repeating
itself [...] And could we use - games - something fundamental to human history to do? [...]“(FLANAGAN,
2018).
These games aspire to enhance a player’s understanding of an outside perspective, particularly those
pertaining to real-world struggles and inequalities, through interactive experiences. In the game industry there
are a few successful cases, like Papers, Please (by 3909 LLC) and That Dragon, Cancer (Numinous Games)
showing that this emerging genre is here to stay. For Vander Caballero, the designer of Papo & Yo (Minority
Media Inc.), the reason these games work so well is because they are endowed with four key elements: Personal
Story, which gets people to identify with the narrative; Metaphors, which softens the weight of sensitive issues;
it is equally important to Give Closure allowing the player to reflect on the experience; and finally, the Beat
Chart, which are keywords or key concepts that define the structure of the game. Through these immersive
experiences, players often acquire or enhance a whole bunch of important skills, such as agency. How does
agency play a role in empathy? Agency is “the satisfying power to take meaningful action and see the results
of our decision and choices” (Murray, 2017, p. 159). Agency is defined as the understanding that “actions taken
by the player [will] result in significant changes within the world” (Gibbs, 2011, para. 4).

4. METHODOLOGY

4.1 Case Study: Games with Empathy

The PBL method is generally guided by a step-by-step approach consisting of seven of them, which will be
presented and contextualized with the case study, below. First, it was necessary to "clarify the difficult terms,"
contextualizing to the students what was empathy, followed by a debate for a common understanding. There
was also a presentation on empathy with a guest expert, where the students were able to delve deeper into the
subject. The second step was to list the social issues related to the theme, such as racism, femicide, xenophobia,
urban violence, among others. We continue to discuss possible diagnoses and means to prove them, through
research on news, media (films, novels, documentaries, etc.) and sharing personal experiences; this was the
third step in the process. It is worth highlighting the whole process, but mainly in the initial stages, was also
guided by the design thinking method, where the students used some tools to assertively understand the context.
To move to the fourth step we summarized in shared documents the information collected and make it
publicly accessible by all. The class self organized into thematic interest groups. In the fifth stage a specific
learning objective related to the proposal of the technical course of the college - multimedia (basically digital
art and design) and game programming - was defined: the development of a short digital games as tools to
promote positive impact in society, through the reflection caused by its emergent narrative and through
gameplay. This objective was accompanied by technical restrictions such as specific gaming genres aligned
with the students' technical ability limitations and a game scope consistent with the time they possessed. To
reduce the impact on students, the three subjects of the technical year of the school year in question (in this
case, the second year of high school) were integrated to evaluate the project as a unique production.

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International Conferences Interfaces and Human Computer Interaction 2019; Game and Entertainment Technologies 2019;
and Computer Graphics, Visualization, Computer Vision and Image Processing 2019

In the sixth stage, usually of study and complementary research, the development of the game projects was
given; the search for knowledge was specific to the technical issues of each project. In group, students sought
to complement the technical content of game development in a specific engine, viewed in the classroom, as
well as other content inherent to the activity, such as technical documents of game design, organization and
management of agile projects with tools online and even pixel art for digital games, which was not initially
part of the scope of the digital game programming course. The projects were also developed through iterative
prototyping and guided by agile design reasoning, using Scrum as a production framework.
Finally, in the seventh and final stage, the groups presented their solutions - four digital empathetic games
- in pitch presentation for a group of professionals from the regional game development market.

5. RESULTS
As a result of the case study four prototypes of relatively good games were produced, very well evaluated by
the bank of external professionals. Students have engaged exceptionally and developed a collaborative culture
across the class. It also became apparent that all groups were self-educated on topics not covered by the course
syllabus proactively.
One of the teams, which had the topic of "abusive relationships between teenagers," developed an online
survey form during the preliminary stages and obtained almost one hundred responses and eventually
developed a network of sorority with the people interviewed (mostly girls). In a particular case, a subject of
research contacted the girls, and inspired by them, identified that she was having an abusive relationship and
created the courage to bring an end to it. During the pitch presentation day, a very significant feedback came
from one of the evaluating teachers (who also participated in the game's mentoring process), who reported
ignoring the relevance and particularities of the topic "abusive relationship" and showed how much that
experience had "changed" him, making him rethink his paradigms.

Figure 1. Gameplay screen of True Colors digital game, visual novel about abusive relationships between teenagers
The other games used the elements exposed by Caballero (2014) to classify the empathic games: in the
visual novel "Space Between Us", students use the metaphor of a human astronaut who is harassed by aliens
residing in a distant galaxy because it is different of them and is considered inferior by the simple fact of being
human, even while it tries to warn them about an imminent supernova of its Sun - a clear reference to
xenophobia. In the action adventure "Sound of the War", the player is exposed to a reality, that was common
among the participants of the team: the urban violence that slum dwellers experience in Rio de Janeiro. The
goal of the game was to divert from various hazards and save children in a scenario depicting a favela with
top-view camera. Already in "RunFugiada", an action runner, the narrative was about a girl from the Middle
East region, who must flee the war and its dangers. Although it looks like the endless runner genre, the game
GIVE CLOSURE to the player, when it reached a certain stretch of the scene, which caused its immediate
defeat, followed by news and statistical data on the impact of the wars in the region.

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Figure 2. Gameplay screen of Space Between Us digital game, visual novel uses narrative metaphors to talk about
xenophobia

6. CONCLUSION
It is clear from the case study that empathic games, without value judgment as to their gender classification,
are powerful tools for promoting positive impact on society. Even games being considered by many as an
"escapist" activity, they are also "returnist" (McGonigal, 2012), ie: the player, after playing them, returns to
"real life" with real abilities, which were more or less developed through the emergence of the lived narratives.
The activity of developing empathic games through the pbl by the students was fundamental not only to enable
them technically in the task, but also to make them reflect on their role in society, to develop criticality and to
connect with other time, either by sharing difficult personal experiences or by listening attentively to the
anguishes of their peers' difficulties. It is clear to the authors the reflexive potential that this type of game has
in relation to its players, since the agency that normally the act of throwing caused that subjects previously
ignored by some of them, were evidenced and paradigms were revised.

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