Why game is a great tool for transformations?
Urban games can change their users' routine routes and everyday behavior by creating new points of attractions. They are even able to transform social connections, at least for the period of gaming.
Urban games can change their users' routine routes and everyday behavior by creating new points of attractions. They are even able to transform social connections, at least for the period of gaming. And they can transform the image of the place, the way we perceive it. These ingredients make urban games a powerful tool for short-term and long-term transformations of the urban spaces.
In its practice, Laimikis.lt uses urban games as a tool for spatial and cultural transformation of the places. We use this term in a wide sense, involving art interventions, which change the use of the places in a playful way, creative maps that encourage to explore the neighborhoods, and all kinds of tasks that activate the active navigation of the area. By adjusting a space through art interventions (such as a module playground, which consists of huge yet light typographic elements) or introducing some playful tasks, the games bring new points of attraction and new experiences to our mental maps. Here are some examples of the gamification approach to the urban space that Laimikis uses.
However, during "I_Improve" activities, we have expanded the Arsenale of the creative tools, including board games. It encouraged us to explore the methods of storytelling and the connection between narratives and visualization. What we have found:
- Stories of the place are an important part of the urban landscape;
- Through storytelling, you can explore the landscapes which are already lost or could emerge in the future;
- Collective storytelling is beneficial in co-developing the shared identity of the place;
- Collective storytelling is an important part of the collective actions in public spaces (waterfronts).
Jekaterina Lavrinec, Laimikis.lt
Illustrations (c) Laimikis.lt
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