Projektledare
Mike Hazas
Projekttid
Augusti, 2023 - Augusti, 2027
Aug, 2023 - Aug, 2027
Projektbudget
7 000 000 SEK
Lärosäte
Uppsala University, KTH, University of Bristol
Digital games are quickly growing, a shifting blend involving desktop PCs, laptops and consoles, mobile phones and tablets, physical and digital distribution of the games, and cloud gaming services (e.g. GeForce Now). An overlooked aspect for digital games are their consequent carbon emissions worldwide, and their demands on electricity networks. As gaming continues to grow, we must shape this growth in sustainable ways.
Through a mix of qualitative and quantitative field work, this project will: (1) Map out how gaming is composed in Sweden (demographics, devices, services, delivery, genre and playstyle); (2) Use this composition to model the energy and environmental footprint for different forms of gaming; (3) Uncover the meanings and practicalities of both older and newer forms of playing games, charting the next decade’s possible trajectories. (4) Evaluate the footprint of these trajectories.
March 2023 – Decision to finance by the MESAM programme of the Swedish Energy Agency
March – June 2023 – Recruitment of PhD student at Uppsala University
August 2023 – Formal start of project
First Phase
November 2024 – January 2025
Recruitment of participants: i.e., video game companies and players
Initial participatory observation and observational studies at events and gatherings related to digital games.
Second Phase
January 2025 – December 2025
Ethnographic studies at game companies
Digital and physical participatory observation of and with Swedish users of digital games (players).
Further recruitment of upcoming participating companies.
Third Phase
January 2026 – July 2028
Analysis of collected empirical material
Writing of doctoral dissertation, project report, and other research publications.
Mike Hazas has a PhD in Mobile Computing from the University of Cambridge is a professor of human-Computer interaction at the Department of Information Technology at Uppsala University and leads the Digital Ecologies Lab at the same insitution. Mike´s research is concerned with everyday practices and digital technologies, and how they can be related to sustainability (energy demand and carbon emissions). Much of his recent work has focused on the proliferation of online services (streaming, social networking, gaming); and their invisible impacts due to the Internet and data centres. Mike has also spent significant time researching thermal comfort; and digital automation. I employ both qualitative and quantitative approaches.
Per Fors had a doctorate degree in industrial engineering and management at the Department of Civil and Industrial Engineering, Uppsala University. Currently he is a Teacher and researcher at the Division of Industrial Engineering and Management. His research is focusing on issues related to ICT, ethics and sustainability, and he teaches engineering ethics, ethics of technology, research ethics, sustainability management and more. Per was chair of IFIP TC9 Working Group 9 on ICT and Sustainable Development.
Ossian Nordgren is a PhD Student in Human-Computer Interaction at the department of information technology, Uppsala University. He has a masters degree in social anthropology from Stockholm University. Ossians research focuses on the relationship between the digital, social, and ecological. Previously he has studied the future imaginaries of Vietnamese Blockchain Professionals and the interrelationship between play and labor as experienced by Swedish Twtich.tv Streamers.
PhD Student in Human-Computer Interaction at the department of information technology, Uppsala University.
Björn Hedin has a doctoral degree in media technology and interaction design from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, and works as an associate professor focusing on the individual’s role in a sustainable energy system, and how design can play a role in that. He has led and participated several research projects within this area. Björn has also done research in serious games and games for learning for energy conservation and promoting sustainable behaviours.
Daniel Schien is a Senior Lecturer in Computer Science at the University of Bristol, UK. His research aims at improving our understanding of the environmental impact from information and communication technologies (ICT) and the reduction of such impact. His research has pioneered new methods and tools to assess the carbon footprint of digital media which have been applied by major international media companies. Dan is currently leading the technical development of the DIMPACT tool (http://www.dimpact.org) to calculate organisational carbon footprints of digital services used by major digital media companies, including Netflix, the BBC, and Shibstedt. Dan’s work has been widely reported in the media, including Wired, The Times, BBC Television, and German National Radio.
Dataspelsbranschen represents the Swedish games industry as a whole, from small game development studios to large publishers and distributors, but also the industry’s ecosystem such as games education and incubators for new companies.
Our mission is to create the best conditions for game development, to increase knowledge about games, and to be the voice of the Swedish gaming industry both in Sweden and internationally.
Candy Crush Saga, Battlefield and Minecraft are some of the world’s most popular games – and created in Sweden. To continue successful development and maintain competitiveness, conditions are needed for long-term sustainable growth.
Our member companies account for the majority of turnover and employment in the Swedish gaming industry. The companies create entertainment for billions of players worldwide.
PlayCreateGreen is a direct result of Bornholm Game Days 2019. At this industry event, more than 40 Nordic game companies decided that climate was the most important issue to address in the following year. Nordisk Games, therefore, offered to facilitate a climate group during 2019-2020 to make real change.
The climate group with representatives from Avalanche Studios Group, BetaDwarf, Embracer Group, Landfall Games, Massive Entertainment, Nordisk Games, SYBO, Reto Moto and Bornholm Game Days addressed several climate issues and soon realized that many others, like themselves, want to act but don’t know how to get started, what to do and who to talk to.
This is the reason why PlayCreateGreen.org was born – to share, inspire, and make real change possible for all game companies. In October 2020 version 1.0 of PlayCreateGreen was launched and Nordisk Games, Embracer Group, Landfall Games, Swedish Games Industry, Massive Entertainment and Advenimus have since taken upon them to contributed to the funds to continue PlayCreateGreen and develop the movement, community, and online handbook.
Ben Abraham, AfterClimate, Research and Standard Lead Sustainable Games Alliance
Josh Aslan, Senior Manager, Environment & Climate Strategy at Sony Interactive Entertainment
Patrick Prax, Associate Professor, Associate Professor at Department of Game Design, Uppsala University
Abstract
Slow, incremental, and minor actions toward mitigating climate change dominate policy discourse and much of “green” game design. Despite the extreme urgency of the situation, industries and systems destroying our conditions of life are booming. This chapter argues that we need to go beyond just learning about sustainable living, we need to actively resist. Based on interviews with games makers and readings of their games, this chapter explores how resistance games can be a vessel for game makers and players to imagine and engage with climate struggle and green games in ways leading to meaningful material and social change.
Abstract
Swedish industrial companies are often regarded as being at the forefront of sustainability, due to factors such as strong and proactive environmental policies and widespread access to renewable energy. The Swedish video game industry enjoys an equally impressive reputation, having produced world-leading titles and IPs despite its modest size, a phenomenon referred to as the “Swedish gaming wonder”. Recently, the trade association for the Swedish Video Game Industry, Swedish Games Industry, has started to promote the environmental sustainability of the industry. However, while the industry’s climate impact is described as “low,” the actual impact remains unclear. Previous research on GHG reporting within the Swedish video game industry has generally focused on individual case companies. These studies offer limited insight into the industry’s overall performance. The focal study seeks to show how actors within the industry report on environmental sustainability, and what areas require improvement in light of the upcoming European Union (EU) Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). Furthermore, it seeks to contribute methodologically and theoretically to qualitative assessment of environmental sustainability reporting practices through the development of an assessment matrix. The final assessment matrix, which is one of the contributions of the study, comprises 1) Impact Identification and (Double-) Materiality, 2) Environmental Sustainability Targets and Goals, 3) Governance, Strategy, and Policy Compliance, 4) Stakeholder Identification and Engagement, and 5) Report Quality and Clarity. Preliminary findings indicate that most of the companies in the sample are aware of various negative impacts of their operations; however, very few show where along their value chain these negative effects occur and how extensive they are. More specifically, the companies struggle with Scope 3 emissions, both in terms of reporting and strategic responses. While many companies provide explicit and quantifiable goals and targets related to GHG emissions, few show how these goals and targets align with overall business-related targets and strategies.
Kukreja, Y. A. (2025). Designing a sustainable social media platform: An ecofriendly approach to Discord (Dissertation). Retrieved from https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-567554
Berg, M. (2024). Energy implications of upscaling and frame generation in games (Dissertation). Retrieved from https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-536025
Tamilselvan, V. (2024). Is Twitch Sustainable? Streaming for Sustainability: Quantifying the Carbon Footprint of Twitch Streaming: A Controlled Experiment and Real-World Analysis (Dissertation). Retrieved from https://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:uu:diva-538634
Kontaktpersoner
Ta gärna kontakt med oss om du har frågor eller funderingar.
Mike Hazas
Professor, människa-datorinteraktion, Institutionen för informationsteknologi, Uppsala Universitet
Daniel Schien
Senior Lecturer in Computer Science, School of Computer Science, University of Bristol
Kevin C. Dalli
Doktorand, människa-datorinteraktion, Institutionen för informationsteknologi, Uppsala Universitet
Projektet finansieras av Energimyndigheten. Projektets deltagare står själva för sidans innehåll och projektens resultat.
Kontakt:
mesam@energimyndigheten.se
