The Game That Could Save Us All

The Institute for the Future is launching an MMO (Massively Multiplayer Online Game) to save the world. Superstruct aims to “address real-world problems by harnessing the wisdom of the crowds.” The game’s release comes on the heels of the biggest economic crisis since the Great Depression. With many people feeling powerless against the tide of changing times, SuperStruct offers the chance to collaborate with others to address the culmination of the human race’s folly in 2019.

An MMO that lives in Social Media

Superstruct is played on forums, blogs, videos, wikis, and perhaps even twitter. Players are presented with bleak scenarios of the future and react. I know this might be difficult for some to wrap their heads around (I’m still figuring this out myself) so I’ve developed a quick guide on how to play the game when it launches on October 6, 2008.

How to Play

1. Read the Scenario (Living life 10 years from now)

Put on your imagination cap. It is the year 2019. A computer called the Global Extinction Awareness System (GEAS) is now live and has delivered a forecast on the threats facing the human race. The initial report lists five main threats to humanity: Quarantine, Ravenous, Power Struggle, Outlaw Planet, and Generation Exile. The forecast predicts that these will culminate in our eventual extinction in 2040.

Ok you can take off your imagination cap now. Notice how the threats listed could all conceivably happen. The scenarios are defined by a unique set of “future parameters” taken from the IFTF’s forecast research.  Wars over energy resources and global hunger issues are real and could worsen in the future. The IFTF hopes that this game will get people thinking about how we could deal with these threats in the coming years.

[Via - IFTF ]

2. Using Social Media to Play

Now its time to play! Put your cap back on. Imagine yourself living life within these parameters. The Ravenous Scenario foresees the collapse of the food supply chain in 2019. We are inventing new ways to feed ourselves. The video below describes this Superthreat.

Mexico, China, Middle East and the processed food industry are the hardest hit. In Austria over 100 university students have mounted trains with hatchets and bio hazard bags. The students are calling for the slaughter of the region’s chickens after the birds were diagnosed with the Avian Flu.

Would you travel to Austria to participate in the University student riot? Would you take similar actions if you found out your local food supply had been contaminated and were faced with government inaction? How has life changed for your family, friends and community? Document your journey. Set up a video blog, twitter account or join a forum to discuss solutions to these problems.

3. Stay tuned for more information on SuperStruct.

The game is set to launch on October 6, 2008. More information on the game can be found here. You can also connect to over 700 people on the SuperStruct Facebook group here.

Tagged as: Institute for the Future, MMO, mmoS, Superstruct