Most of the time, we don't think about how our daily life activities affect the planet. But, unfortunately, they do, and video games are no exception. However, there is no need to get demotivated because there is always hope. That is why the gaming community has recently decided to stand up for the climate.
And this January 2021, the Playing for the Planet Alliance published its first annual report on the gaming industry's impact on the planet.
But first things first. Let's figure out what the Play for the Planet Alliance is, for starters.
The Play for the Planet Alliance is a union of gaming companies that was founded during the Climate Summit held in New York in September 2019. It was created by the UN Environment Program (UNEP) with the support of GRID-Arendal and the Playmob Alliance.
And this is an unprecedented step for the world community. Just think about it for a second -- the alliance already includes 29 large gaming companies, among which you can find such acclaimed names as Sony Interactive Entertainment, Microsoft and Google Stadia. So, in total, the alliance covers more than 1.2 billion players. Not bad at all, isn't it?
The alliance is based on the same pillars as the entire gaming world, namely healthy competition, creativity and, of course, the players themselves. But what is especially important to note is the strategy used by the alliance. Instead of creating an entirely new product and expecting a sufficient number of people to be interested in it, the alliance members decided to integrate the climate aspect into already existing games and turn the whole industry "green."
So, the alliance was pursuing 4 primary goals:
01. To rally the industry to reduce its carbon footprint;
02. To inspire environmental action through green activations in games;
03. To share the learnings of the initiative;
04. To explore new strategies for the future around new games and approaches to storytelling.
And here are some results the alliance managed to achieve in 2020 only:
The 2020 Green Game Jam reached 110 million people through activations placed in games made by 11 major studios, including titles such as Angry Birds and Subway Surfers.
Two-thirds of the companies have committed to reducing their carbon footprint with a new calculator for the industry to be created in 2021.
Additional 8 major companies joined the alliance.
These are the achievements to be proud of since 2020 was the year of stagnation when we were force-glued to our couches and, as a result, were feeling helpless and useless sometimes. However, this recent gaming community initiative has proved that we can make a significant change even sitting on our sofas.
As it was underscored by Sam Barratt, Chief of Youth, Education and Advocacy at UNEP and Alliance Co-Founder: "The game industry is now probably the biggest entertainment medium of our time." That is why it has all the potential to reach as many people as possible and make its contribution to the fight against the worst enemy of humankind – climate change.
"This industry has the potential to reach one in three people on the planet and will be a critical partner if we are to win the greatest multiplayer challenge of our time: climate change. We're delighted to see the progress the alliance has made so far and know that this is just scratching the surface of what's possible."
Sam Barratt
Chief of Youth, Education and Advocacy at UNEP and Co-Founder of the Alliance
So how about playing for the planet? Let's get the game started!