Almost 50% of gamers have reduced their environmental impact after playing games highlighting the issues of climate change.
That’s according to non-for-profit organisation PlanetPlay after releasing the latest results of its Play2Act survey, conducted in collaboration with the United Nations Development Program.
181,000 players from 189 countries took part in the survey, which was placed in 24 games including Subway Surfers, Beatstar, Pokémon Go, and Avakin Life.
20 developers also took part in the Play2Act Initiative, including Bandai Namco, Jagext, Lockwood, Niantic, Robvio, Tripledot, and Unity.
The survey found that 79% of respondents that played titles with environmental content had made “at least one positive behavioural change” while 34% had made “greener consumption choices”.
49% of players said they think video games can play a role in solving climate change or addressing environmental issues, with 55% saying games can do so by raising awareness. 52% said games can educate players on what to do to take action.
24% of those surveyed said they felt hopeful after playing green game content, realising there are potential solutions to tackle climate change.
The results of the survey will contribute to the Game Realising Effective and Affective Transformation project, funded by the European Union Horizon and UK Research Innovation groups.
Studios that participated in the initiative will use the survey data to “promote measures and actions with in the industry,” while the UNDP will use it to “aggregate the results to better understand global opinion on climate and nature action”.
“Games are uniquely positioned to engage a vast and diverse audience on environmental issues,” said PlanetPlay CEO Rhea Loucas.
“Seeing so many players adopt greener habits after engaging with green content is a powerful testament to the impact games can have in shaping a more sustainable future.”
UNDP global director of climate change Cassie Flynn added: “More needs to be done to enhance awareness of the climate and nature crises.
We must utilise every tool at our disposal to drive meaningful change, and this effort should involve every segment of society, including the private sector and the gaming industry.
“The Play2Act initiative shows the potential of games – not only as an entertainment tool, but also as platforms for gathering insights and engaging with individuals, especially young people, on a large scale.”
Last month, PlanetPlay announced three new ambassadors for its Make Green Moves campaign, including games industry veteran Ian Livingstone.
The Make Green Moves campaign has raised $2.2 million to date, with 100% of proceeds funding environmental projects.