1. Summary of Evaluation Findings

2.  Playing games brings together
fundamental aspects of
psychology, sociology and
technology to engage people for
social change
 72% of American households play
computer and video games
WHY GAMES?
 Have seen the rise of games in
popular culture with video games
and reality television competitions
 Games engage the public’s
imagination

3.  Knight Foundation aims to
increase the ability of individuals
to engage in change by funding
innovative ideas
 Research on digital games
WHY FUND shows that they can influence
SOCIAL
IMPACT behavior
GAMES?
 Knight wanted to see if the same
was true for games that took
place in the real-world, in real-
time with real-people

4.  Funded two pilot projects:
 Macon Money in Macon, GA
 Battlestorm in Biloxi, MS
WHY FUND
– Knight partnered with local
SOCIAL partners on a game that
IMPACT
GAMES?
promotes the importance of
hurricane preparedness
through activities focused on
youth as leaders.

7. CATALYZING
SOCIAL
CHANGE
Macon Money:
Connecting
residents and
spurring
economic
growth.

9.  More than 3,500 unique
players.
 About one in five players
played the game more than
once.
AT A GLANCE
 $65,000 was distributed to
players to spend at 41 local
businesses.
 The top-earning business made
more than $12,000

10. A MACON-
CENTRIC
INTEGRATE
D
STRATEGY
Game
designers used
images from
local partners
and from the
city’s history

11. HOW TO
PLAY THE
GAME
Match your bond
half with another
player, redeem
it for Macon
Money bills and
spend them in
local businesses
Watch a video of how to play: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OT91aQTFHiY

12. Timeline of
Total Game
Activity
(Online and
Offline)

13. WHO
PLAYED?
Game had a
young
audience
Most players
surveyed
were 40
years or
younger
Note: When pre- and post-game surveys were combined, the
percentage increases to 84%.

14. WHO
PLAYED?
Young
Professionals
Majority of players
surveyed that
were 31-40 were
employed full-time
with incomes
$60k and above

15. WHO
PLAYED?
More women
than men!

16. WHO PLAYED?
African Americans
underrepresented
Outreach
efforts to boost
their
participation
were largely
unsuccessful

17. Key Findings:
Engaged
Residents/
Created New
Connections

18.  Players used social networks
(offline and online) to engage
others in the game and meet
new people.
Key Findings:  66% of matches were with
Engaged
Residents/
people players did not previously
Created know
Social
Connections  63% of matches were with
people the player would be “very
unlikely” to meet otherwise.

19.  Players played regularly with a
group, such as friends, colleagues
or people at church
Key Findings:
Engaged
Residents/
Created
Social
Connections

20.  Relatively few strong ties created – only1
in 5 matches led to further personal
contact, and only 15% of those became
friends on Facebook
Key Findings:
Engaged
Residents/
Created
Social
Connections

21. Key Findings:
Catalyzed
Economic
Development

22.  Players continued to return to
businesses they visited during the
game
– 46% reported they spent Macon Money
at a business that was new to them, and
Key Findings: of those, 92% reported they have
Catalyzed returned to a business that was new to
Economic them
Development
– More than 85% of players surveyed said
their perception of shops, parks and
other amenities in the target revitalization
area improved since playing the game

23. Key Findings:
Catalyzed
Economic
Development

24. Key Findings:
Contributed to
Place
Attachment/
Built Social
Capital

25.  Game created sense of excitement
about Macon and increased
optimism about Macon’s future
Key Findings:
– Positive correlation between
Contributed to number of times played game
Place and agreement with
Attachment/ “the energy and appeal of the CHC/Downtown
Built Social Macon area is on the rise.”
Capital “Macon is becoming a more welcoming place for
young adults to live. “
“5 years from now, Macon will be an even better
place to live”.

26. Key Findings:
 Majority of players would recognize
Contributed to
Place
their matches and say “hi” on the street
Attachment/
Built Social
Capital
Familiar faces
in our
environment
contribute to a
sense of place
and belonging

27. What
did we learn?

28.  Create synergies by building on
existing revitalization efforts and
events
 Combine diverse value
propositions for players with
BEST different or evolving interests
PRACTICES:
Game Design
 Combine online and offline
elements to meet players where
they are most comfortable
interacting
– Explore use of social media to create
longer lasting connections

29.  Build in strategies so that bills are
spent equitably within target area
of local businesses
– Encourage use of social media by
businesses
BEST  Mobilize local business owners to
PRACTICES: invest in game
Game Design
 Experiment with mechanics that
encourage looser or stronger
connections between players

30.  Target outreach to highly
networked players
 Right-sizing: Macon Money best
suited to small cities or
neighborhoods
BEST
PRACTICES:  Right-timing: Game should be
Implementation played intermittently, not
continuously
 Get city involved in game
promotion

31.  Games like Macon Money need to
reinforce other efforts and be part of a
larger context. Tap into existing
networks and infrastructure
 Keep your project grounded in the
community you are serving from
development through implementation.
KEY
 Be open to changes that help fix
TAKEAWAYS
unanticipated bugs in the game’s
design or implementation.
 Have an “open-source” mindset and be
prepared to let go when the game
shows signs of having a life of its own.

32.  Game designers produced
documentation designed to help
anyone interested in creating
future iterations of Macon
MACON
MONEY Money in their community
In Your Town
 Link:
http://www.maconmoney.org/in_your_town

33.  Please visit:
MORE
ON KNIGHT Knightfoundation.org/games
AND GAMES

34.  Methodology:
– Pre- and post-game interviews with
Knight Foundation, Area / Code, and
community partners
– In-depth interviews with 26 players
– Results of pre- and post-game player
EVALUAITON survey (n-757)
AND – Area / Code bond tracking data, analysis
ASSESSMENT of game website and Facebook traffic
– Participant observation of game-related
events
– Focus group interviews and surveys with
participating businesses

35. Questions?