Human-Nonhuman Relations – Green Media Mediography

Sleeping Gods

Ryan Laukat. Art by Ryan Laukat. Red Raven Games, 2021. 1–4 players | Multiple sessions | Age 14+ Sleeping Gods is a story game, a genre of large-format games combining eurogame resource management, combat mechanics, and roleplaying, in which players control a crew of characters who find themselves transported from a sea voyage to New

Herdling

The game invites players to "head out on a grand alpine expedition with a herd of loveable beasts, as you ascend a mountain path, encounter eerie dangers and surprising obstacles, and forge your way to the mystery at the summit".

Ōkami

Ōkami is one of those games that stays with you long after you have played it. You take on the role of Amaterasu, the Japanese sun goddess in the form of a white wolf, and alongside your tiny, loudmouthed companion Issun (who, by the way, gets far too excited whenever he sees a woman), you

Never Alone

Never Alone, or Kisima Inŋitchuŋa, is a game developed in collaboration with native people of Alaska, called the Iñupiat. The game is about a young Iñupiat girl and a fox trying to find the source of a devastating blizzard that is threatening their world.

Ecogames. An Introduction

Dishonored

Dishonored is an immersive-sim game set in a fictional world that recalls the Victorian Era imaginary. The player takes on the role of Corvo, the Royal Protector and master of spies that is accused of killing the Empress. To redeem his name and save the princess, Emily, he makes a deal with a mysterious demigod

ABZÛ

In the game ABZÛ, the player takes on the role of a diver in a part of the ocean. Without any knowledge on himself, the environment, or the purpose of being there, it is up to the player to discover the secrets of the deep sea. During this adventure, the player will swim alongside all

Wolfspell

In the tabletop role-playing game Wolfspell, players embody humans that have been transformed into wolves. During the campaign, they will balance their wolve and human personalities, embedded in two dices that are used during the game: the blood die, representing the human thought (which includes the will to take risks) and the wolf die, representing

Symbiosis

Symbiosis (Polymorf, 2021) is a performative, multisensory, multiuser and multi-species-storytelling VR experience. It offers a speculative world set 200 years in the future on the ruins of the Anthropocene after climate disaster has changed the world beyond recognition. This installation offers blueprints for the creation of new family relationships between humans, animals, plants and AI. On the verge of extinction, symbiosis between and the redesign

Luna’s Fishing Garden

From the game’s Steam page: “Luna’s Fishing Garden is a short, cozy fishing and building game. Become a part of a fairytale, catch fish, trade with the fox spirit, and create the garden of your dreams by planting new trees, placing water objects, and bringing animals to the archipelago.” The developers encourage slow and paidic

Solar Power

A psychedelic/folk-pop album by New Zealand -born artist Lorde. The album deals with nature as a an escapist haven, introspection, climate anxiety, and more through its lyrics, sonic themes and organic recordings such as the chirping of Cicadas.

Explained: The Future of Meat

Explained is a Netflix documentary series, tackeling different topics each week. This episode delves into meat production and explores sustainable alternatives.

“A Rickconvenient Mort” in Rick and Morty

The Netflix serial Rick and Morty is a comedy sci-fi animated show portraying a young teenage boy named Morty Smith and his nihilistic scientist grandfather Rick Sanchez whom travel through dystopian galaxies together. Every episode is a different story with dark humour intertwined. One of the most recently produced episodes called “A Rickconvenient Mort” features an ecological superhero named Planetina. Planetina forms an non-traditional eco hero, which shows the struggle of solving the Climate crisis. The character first poses as an ecofeminist symbol which is used as a business commodity to make profit. Later in the episode she is freed from her 'owners' and her archetype as Pure Hero fades. The struggle of solving big climate issues and at the same time act in an ethical way are pictured in the episode. She frames the broken system as the main issue.

Okja

Okja (2017) is a film made by filmmaker Bong Joon-Ho, who is also known for his environmental film Snowpiercer (2013). Okja tells the story of Mija and her genetically modified pet animal, Okja. Okja was created by the Mirando Corporation, who created a line of superpigs to try to solve world hunger and meat shortages.

Pom Poko

Pom Poko (1994) is set in the Tama Hills on the outskirts of Tokyo, in the late 1960s, and it is focused on a tribe of shape-shifting raccoon dogs who are threatened by a massive suburban development project. Pom Poko highlights the fact that the natural world can be exploited with the aim to promote urban development at the expense of nature.

Spiritfarer

Spiritfarer is a “cozy management game about death”, as the developer describes it. In Spiritfarer you play as Stella, accompanied by her cat Daffodil, she becomes the ferrymaster of the deceased and takes spirits onto their last journey. The player builds and expands their boat, helps their spirit friends on their last adventures, and cares

The Earthshot Prize: Repairing our Planet

This documentary series is made by The Earthshot Prize in collaboration with the BBC, and looks into solutions that promise to deliver a sustainable world in which both nature and humanity can thrive. The project aims to generate new ways of thinking, as well as new technologies, systems, policies, and solutions.

The Birds

In this Hitchcock film, birds ferociously and perpetually attack humans in Bodega Bay. It shows an 'animal retribution', and is an iconic reference point for the prospect of ecological apocalypse.

FernGully: The Last Rainforest

FernGully is the story of the magical fairy inhabitants of a rainforest, who attempt to protect the forest from logging and polution. It portrays the intersection of transnational activism, corporate environmentalism, and technologies that accelerated and globalized the production process.

The Elder Scrolls

The Elder Scrolls is primarily a fantasy video game series. The franchise has an active modding community, which is a site for discourse and debate over environmental and ecological issues.

Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing is a video game series where the player moves into a village populated by animals, where they are encouraged by the inhabitants and biodiversity to display pro-conservation behaviours and attitudes.

Photosynthesis

Photosynthesis is a green strategy board game, in which players plant and grow their own forest. By suggesting the subjectivity of trees, the game questions human-centered thinking.

Star Trek

Star Trek is an American science fiction franchise, that actively uses their storylines to explore contemporary political and social issues. They often focus on diplomacy across cultures and promoting collaborative approaches to problem-solving.

Bee Simulator

Bee Simulator allows a player to experience life as a honey bee, encouraging the player to actively learn about the bee ecosystem, the value of biodiversity, and the relationships between animals and humans.