Key Factors for Using Games Such as WhereWeMove in Municipal Flood Risk Communication and Collaboration

Abstract

This study identifies key factors for integrating the WhereWeMove game into municipal flood risk communication and collaboration strategies. The game started as a research initiative to support the design of adaptation policy by helping risk management organizations to explore how risk perception and resources shape players’ adaptation choices. During the game rounds, players take the role of a homeowner to learn about their choices given the available game resources and adaptation options. After the gameplay, participants discuss the relations between their game and real-life choices to envision strategies to strengthen homeowners’ capacities. By considering that government organizations often hesitate to adopt innovations according to their available resources, we carried out semi-structured interviews with two municipalities and a province representative to explore their adoption intentions and needs. Thereby, we identified which factors to finetune in the game prototype or pursue at the adopting organizations to use the game in the municipal communication and collaboration strategies. On one side, successful adoption depends on integrating the game into a broader communication strategy aligned with the adaptation priorities across government levels. Conversely, adequate municipal resources and expertise, as well as the game’s ease of use, local relevance, and sufficient data privacy, are required to make the gameplay part of municipal efforts. Adoption is initially considered with a dedicated group contributing to the design of government policies to observe policy-related effects and outputs. Players are conceived as a limited group of professionals and representatives of residents or an advisory organization at the municipality or province.