Green Media Mediography – Utrecht University

Spirit Island

Spirit Island is widely recognized not just as a well designed cooperative strategy game but as a deliberate counter-narrative to the neo-colonial exploration and exploitation gameplay inherent in classic games like Catan. By shifting the player’s perspective from the colonizing “pioneer” to the island itself, the game presents human-nature relations in an unusual and inspiring

Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Heart of the Forest

Released in 2020 by the Polish indie studio Different Tales (co-founded by former The Witcher designers), Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Heart of the Forest is a narrative-driven visual novel RPG. The game’s setting is its most important feature: the real-world Białowieża Forest on the border of Poland and Belarus. It is one of the last

Pokémon Pokopia

Pokémon Pokopia is perhaps the most explicit ‘environmental’ game in the franchise’s history, which makes it an interesting case study. Developed by Game Freak and Omega Force it pivots from the series’ traditional gameplay loop based on catching and battling Pokémon to a gameplay paradigm and corresponding story focused on restoration and rewilding. It has