Inundation: A Gaming App for a Sustainable Approach to Sea Level Rise

Abstract

Over the past few decades, communication has evolved significantly, driven by new technologies and digital connections, with the Internet and mobile phones transforming traditional communication methods. This shift has also impacted disaster risk awareness-raising, requiring messages to adapt to modern digital platforms. This article describes an effort to engage younger generations with the issue of sea level rise, critical yet often overlooked despite its significant impact on global coastal areas, through the serious digital game “Inundation”. Presented for the first time, the game offers an engaging experience where players protect territories from coastal flooding while understanding rising seas’ causes, effects, and impacts. Feedback from student beta testers highlighted the game’s effectiveness in conveying scientific concepts and increasing awareness about this pressing issue. The game’s innovative design, particularly its visual representation of sea level rise at a pace more relatable to human perception, fills a gap in environmental education by making complex topics accessible and engaging. While evaluating the impact of such tools is challenging, initial feedback suggests that “Inundation” has significant potential to foster disaster preparedness and proactive safeguarding actions.

1. Introduction

The sea level has changed many times throughout Earth’s geological past [1], largely due to astronomical phenomena-driven climate change [2]. However, the current rate of global sea level rise (SLR) has more than doubled compared to the last century and continues to increase with the expected progressive inundation of coastal areas [3]. The cause of this rate is primarily global warming triggered by human activities since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution [4], and it significantly impacts coastal communities, ecosystems, and economies worldwide [5]. Despite its potential to heavily reshape the geography of many areas, SLR remains poorly known and understood, even among those living in the most vulnerable coastal areas [6]. Furthermore, its compelling implications are only marginally represented in the public agenda or debates [7,8,9].

As global sea levels rise rapidly, effectively engaging young people is key to building sustainable future resilience.

Addressing SLR requires robust and sustainable mitigation and adaptation strategies to enhance resilience, as well as a concerted effort to raise public awareness about its impacts. A key aspect of this effort is engaging young people, who will inherit the challenges brought by this phenomenon. Fostering sustainability through education is crucial, as it ensures future generations are equipped with the knowledge and tools necessary to adapt to and mitigate the impacts of SLR.

One of the primary methods to enhance public awareness is the dissemination of robust information and best practices that can strengthen the coping capacity of at-risk populations.

In recent years, innovative dissemination methods have emerged with particular attention to the field of edutainment, i.e., educational entertainment [10]. This approach uniquely combines education with entertainment, allowing individuals to acquire new knowledge and skills through a “learning while having fun” methodology. Serious games, which are designed with purposes beyond mere entertainment, fall under the edutainment umbrella and have become increasingly important in education across various fields [11,12,13] including Earth and Environmental Sciences [14,15,16,17,18,19]. Although suitable for any type of public, serious games offer a dynamic platform specifically tailored to engage young generations.

This paper introduces the serious game “Inundation”, developed within the European project SAVEMEDCOASTS2 (SeA leVEl rise scenarios along the MEDiterranean COASTS). The game aims to raise public awareness about the phenomenon of SLR. Besides developing scenarios for specific coastal areas, SAVEMEDCOASTS2 identified the gaps and needs among stakeholders and adopted a sustainable approach to empower at-risk communities through significant dissemination efforts in schools. “Inundation” addresses the causes and impacts of SLR through interactive gameplay, simulating real-world scenarios to highlight the importance of resilience and proactive measures. The game aligns with the principles of sustainable resilience by having the potential to enhance the capacity to cope with the impacts of SLR in future generations.

After the description of the rationale behind the game, within a dedicated section, and of the game’s rules, this paper addresses a reasoned analysis of the potential impacts on younger citizens’ awareness of the SLR phenomenon. We then evaluate its qualitative effectiveness in communication and education across five specific dimensions.

2. Addressing the Rise in Sea Levels through Serious Gaming: The Background

The framework of this work focuses on the scientific issue of SLR to enhance the coping capacity of at-risk communities. The rising sea levels pose a significant threat to vulnerable communities, requiring proactive measures for mitigation and adaptation. The methodology relies on effectively engaging youth and aims for a sustainable approach to resilience. Serious games can effectively comply with such methodology to raise awareness and deepen understanding of these risks. This engagement not only educates but also empowers young people to actively contribute to community resilience, thereby improving the overall coping capacity of communities. In this framework, “Inundation” may be a bridge between understanding the scientific challenges of SLR and implementing sustainable, community-driven interventions.

2.1. The Scientific Issue: Challenges of Sea Level Rise

Sea levels have changed several times in Earth’s geological past. Numerous scientific studies and reports, including those from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (www.ipcc.ch, accessed on 16 July 2024), have documented these changes, their causes, and their effects. They confirm that the majority of the SLR observed in the past century is due to human activities [3,4]. These activities have significantly altered the Earth’s climate, contributing directly to rising sea levels. A major factor is global warming, driven by greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and other industrial activities. This warming leads to the thermal expansion of oceans, contributing to SLR. Additionally, the melting of glaciers and polar ice caps, such as Greenland and Antarctica, adds a substantial volume of freshwater to the oceans, further increasing sea levels. The accelerated pace of SLR and its potential consequences for many people have prompted several studies in recent years to model global and regional sea level projections according to different climate scenarios and human-induced greenhouse gas emissions.

The SAVEMEDCOASTS (www.savemedcoasts.eu, accessed on 16 July 2024) and SAVEMEDCOASTS2 (www.savemedcoasts2.eu, accessed on 16 July 2024) projects addressed SLR at the Mediterranean scale for the first time in a multidisciplinary framework. These projects aimed to assess the multiple risks faced by coastal populations in the Mediterranean and enhance their coping capacities through knowledge dissemination. Outreach activities followed targeted research and analysis [6] to gauge the public’s level of knowledge and awareness of SLR, which is often perceived as less dangerous than an earthquake or a volcanic eruption, mainly due to its relatively slow onset, sometimes accelerated by coastal subsidence.

2.2. The Gaming Approach

Engaging youths in a risk education campaign involves several challenges, particularly in choosing effective tools that keep pace with fast-evolving communication media. Gamification, which integrates game elements into non-game contexts, is increasingly used in disaster risk reduction (DRR) and disaster risk management (DRM) [20,21,22]. Serious games, designed for educational purposes rather than mere entertainment, play a crucial role by engaging users and enhancing disaster preparedness understanding [22]. These games align with modern educational approaches that emphasize active learning and problem-solving [15,23,24,25,26].

Digital serious games leverage digital platforms to deliver interactive learning experiences. They are particularly effective because they blend the engaging nature of digital technology with educational objectives, making them highly appealing to the younger, digitally native generation. These games often feature immersive environments, simulations, and real-time feedback, which can enhance the learning process by allowing players to experiment, make decisions, and see the consequences of their actions in a controlled, virtual setting [25]. Their growing popularity in science and technology education underscores their potential to effectively convey complex concepts and develop critical skills in DRM.

Recent advancements in digital and Internet-based tools are impacting educational practices. However, these tools are not always fully utilized by scientists in their communication and educational activities. The transition from traditional dissemination methods, based on face-to-face meetings or appearances on media such as radio and TV [27,28], to web-based dissemination introduces advantages and challenges. While web-based dissemination offers easy access for both content creators and users, broad audience potential, and timelessness (accessible at any time and repeatedly, unlike live conferences or TV programmes), it also faces issues like distinguishing credible sources or detecting fake news [29], and adapting content to social media norms (e.g., short messages in the case of X, formerly Twitter). Additionally, making content understandable and compelling to a diverse audience, including enthusiasts with varying levels of knowledge or, worse, sceptics and anti-scientists, remains a challenge.

The SAVEMEDCOASTS2 project addressed the issue of SLR through the tailor-made KnowRiskFlood campaigns, which engaged schools across Italy, Spain, Greece, and Cyprus. The project used its website, social media, and serious games to spark interest and curiosity about SLR, especially among young people facing future global challenges. Some games were designed for use during information days in schools, with researchers present to interact with students. However, to engage a wider audience beyond outreach events, the digital game “Inundation” was developed as a multi-platform app, allowing it to be played on various devices.

3. Playing “Inundation”

The objective of “Inundation” is to complete a series of challenges to prevent your assigned territory from being flooded by the sea. Falling a challenge results in an increase in your score, which corresponds to a rise in sea level expressed as a percentage. Unlike most games, the winner is the player with the lowest score (and therefore the lowest percentage of flooding) at the end of all challenges. The game concludes when all challenges are completed, regardless of whether one or more players have reached the maximum inundation of 100%. Since this is a “reverse” game, competition remains open to all players, who aim to keep a lower score than their opponents, even if some have already reached 100%. It is important to note that, since the game simulates the impacts of sea level scenarios on human activities, total flooding, represented by a 100% score, means the complete loss of territory. Any increase beyond this becomes irrelevant.

The game was tested by students involved in the KnowRiskFlood campaigns within the SAVEMEDCOASTS2 project in Italy and Spain. Spanish students played a beta (prototype of games not yet finalized and open to possible revisions) version before its official release to provide feedback on the playability, which was very helpful, and will be discussed later. The game was available in three versions for the Windows PC, Android, and iOS platforms. All the versions are identical in content and playability with adjustments made for the screen size and input devices (keyboard for a PC, versus a virtual keyboard for mobile and tablet). The PC version can be downloaded at www.savemedcoasts2.eu/index.php/en/news-en/423-inundation (accessed on 1 September 2024), while the Android version is available as a self-installing app on the Google Play Store. The iOS version of the game is not distributed anymore.

Here, we describe only the PC version as the differences across platforms pertain to how the game runs rather than its structure and contents. It is important to highlight that the design and technical implementation of the game have been handled by a professional company. In creating a good game, there are so many sub-elements to be considered. There is a need to have an illustrator, animator, composer, and VFX master but also a writer, a marketer, and so much more. Failing in any of the numerous tasks involved in the development of a video game undermines the efforts of the entire team. Therefore, we have established a collaborative relationship with the technical developers of the game, relying on their expertise and professionalism for all decision-making. This necessitated several meetings to discuss subsequent versions leading up to the final release.

The game starts by choosing a name and optionally an avatar for the player. The player then competes against three virtual opponents, each assigned to a location studied by the SAVEMEDCOASTS2 project, while the real player is assigned to the city of Venice. At the top of the gameboard (Figure 1), a time bar indicates the passage of time until 2100, the year in which the average sea level could reach more than 1 m higher than today, a value that represents, in a sense, the surpassing of a danger threshold.

A side panel summarizes players’ scores and shows the sea level reached in the various locations at that stage in the game. At the beginning, all scores are equal and worth one. The central board is a geographic map showing the areas of the SAVEMEDCOASTS2 project (Cyprus, Venice, Chalastra in Greece, and the Ebro Delta in Spain) and the player’s position on each turn. The original project planned for these maps to show SLR scenarios and land coverage at each stage of the game, but this animation would have overloaded the CPU (Central Processing Unit). Instead, progress is shown through histograms on the side panel and the flooding percentage at the bottom of the screen. At any time, it is possible to “see” the situation of other locations (and thus of players) by simply clicking on the names of the other players. To do this, in the PC version of the game, the player can use the mouse (or the touch screen if available), while in other versions, the touch screen can be used.

During each turn, the players spin a wheel that generates a random number corresponding to an activity, such as a question, a mini-game related to flooding, or a video question (Figure 2). These activities (Figure 2a–c) impose a penalty, in case of failure to pass the test (wrong answer or game over of a mini-game). If failed, a rise in sea level proportional to the difficulty of the activity will occur. However, the possibility of obtaining a bonus (Figure 2d) keeps the score unchanged by allowing the player to skip the turn. Each spin eliminates previously drawn numbers to prevent repetition, ensuring the game ends once all numbers have been drawn.

For questions and videos, a brief explanation related to the topic is displayed on the screen together with the right answer, regardless of whether the player answers correctly (Figure 3).

Three mini-games suggest different aspects of the SLR (Figure 4) and involve navigating paths or making choices that determine success within a set time. In two of them, the flooding theme is represented by water rising on the game board until it covers it completely. Virtual players are automatically and randomly assigned scores for each turn. At the end of the game, the real player is informed of the outcome (defeat or victory, Figure 5).

4. Discussion

The use of serious games extends to many research fields, especially those in which prevention plays an important role in protecting citizens. These games, designed for educational purposes rather than just entertainment, have proven to be effective tools in dissemination and educational activities. They engage users, particularly the younger, digital-native generation, by promoting understanding and preparedness for disaster scenarios [10].

The effectiveness of games in dissemination and educational activities has been confirmed in pioneering studies. Wilkinson [12] recalls that Plato himself had stated that reinforcing certain behaviours exhibited in games strengthens these behaviours in adulthood. This idea underpins the growing use of gamification in DRR and DRM education, where serious games align with modern educational approaches emphasizing active learning and problem-solving [15,16,17,18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26,30,31,32] and with a more sustainable view of disaster risk management.

Despite their potential effectiveness, measuring the impact of individual initiatives on increased knowledge and preparedness is challenging, due to the lack of a universally accepted procedure and the limitations of quantitative measures alone. Awareness involves multiple factors, such as increased knowledge, understanding, trust, and the ability to anticipate the consequences of hazards [33].

Assessing the impact of “Inundation” on players’ understanding of SLR remains complex, a common issue with many educational tools, particularly video games. While serious games have enhanced student motivation positively compared to traditional methods, their application in DRM is relatively recent [15,16,17,18,20,21,22,30,31,32]. Few studies have explored their potential in this field, and the impact of video games on disaster risk management remains underexamined [34].

In the case of “Inundation”, students interviewed during the testing of the beta version provided qualitative insights into their understanding, level of enjoyment, and their own opinions on the game’s effectiveness in delivering information about sea level rise implications and possible solutions (see

Table 1. Anonymous interviews conducted with Spanish students during the beta game’s testing.

Questions	Answers and Comments
1. Have you experienced any difficulties in understanding how the game works?	Most respondents found the game’s rules to be straightforward and intuitive. However, some players initially struggled with understanding the ‘reverse’ scoring mechanism, though this challenge was quickly resolved after a few rounds of gameplay.
2. How would you rate the difficulty of the questions?	All questions were considered clear and appropriate for the players’ knowledge levels. However, it is unclear whether this positive feedback was influenced by the game being introduced at the end of the outreach activities, or if the questions are inherently straightforward enough for a player engaging with the game independently.
3. Do you think the game effectively helps young people understand the phenomenon of rising sea levels, its implications, and possible solutions?	Many players believe that visualizing the rise in sea levels helps in understanding the phenomenon. However, nearly all agree that showing how much of the central test site in the game is submerged would be far more impactful in conveying the consequences. Additionally, some players feel that the section on behaviours to mitigate the phenomenon should be more thoroughly developed.
4. Would you recommend the serious game to friends?	The majority responded positively. However, many emphasized that the option to play online in real time with other players would greatly enhance the game’s appeal.

). These interviews have been carried out within the KnowRiskFlood campaigns according to a format that included three distinct phases, each conveying knowledge using different tools:

• First phase: students attended a brief informative seminar that introduced an overview of the technical aspects of SLR.
• Second phase: scientists led interactive games designed to reinforce the seminar’s concepts.
• Third phase: students downloaded and played “Inundation” on their devices. During and after playing, some students provided feedback on the game according to the four questions listed in Table 1.

A recent paper by Vázquez-Vílchez et al. [35] identified five key dimensions for assessing the effectiveness of communication and education in serious games for DRM: identification, narrative, content, gameplay, and educational aspects. Each of these dimensions is described using specific indicators. For example, the identification dimension refers to how the game is presented, including the name, language, URL/app, and the type of creator (author and institution). The narrative dimension pertains to the storytelling approach of the game and its relevance to DRM. The content dimension focuses on the terminology used, whether technical, with explicit usage of scientific terms, and its accuracy. The gameplay dimension describes aspects such as whether the game is multiplayer or single-player, the level of interactivity, duration, and feedback and reward systems. The educational dimension includes evaluation of the competencies, skills, and problem-solving abilities that the game can help develop. These dimensions are assessed qualitatively using a ranking system of low, medium, and high. The interviews conducted with Spanish students during the beta-testing of “Inundation” in the Ebro Delta area included general questions (Table 1) that aligned with some of these indicators and allowed for a qualitative evaluation of the game’s communication and educational capacity (see

Table 2. Qualitative effectiveness ranking of “Inundation” in communication and education across five specific dimensions [35].

Dimension	Indicator	Notes	Overall Evaluation
Identification	Language	English only. It is one of the most spoken languages, but a multilanguage platform could increase the score	Medium
Narrative	Narrative relevance	Research studies provide the framework and highlight the gaps that are addressed in the game	Medium
	Dimension/Space/Scale	Only 4 sites are considered, while the issue of SLR is almost worldwide
	Dimension/Time	Time to 2100 is about eighty years from now, which makes it difficult for players to imagine the planet by that time
Contents	Message framework	Clear, concise, and straight to the point	Medium
	Terminology used to describe natural hazards	Somewhat too technical
Gameplay	Number of players and usage (individual or collective)	Lack of a connection to Internet for multiplayer	Medium
	Game duration	The duration of the game is fine (about one hour)
	Level of interactivity	The interactivity focuses on quizzes where each answer affects sea level, allowing the player to actively slow its rise
	Reward system.	The game uses a reverse scoring mechanism that is not immediately intuitive. This initial challenge helps reinforce the underlying message
Didactics	Skills	Remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate	High
	Problem-solving conditions	Productive reasoning, memory

).

Unanimously, students were particularly intrigued by how real-world issues like climate change and rising sea levels were translated into a video game. This raises the question of whether, without prior educational activities, players would have recognized the game’s representation of real-world issues affecting them, rather than perceiving it as mere fantasy.

Although the game’s narrative is well grounded in research studies [6], it covers only four locations, limiting its scope on the global issue of SLR. The time frame extending to 2100 poses an additional challenge, as players find it difficult to imagine the future that far ahead. Despite these constraints, the students found the content clear and concise, although some terminology was considered too technical for a non-expert audience. No specific criticism was directed at the content of the questions, which were deemed appropriately challenging for the students’ level (Table 1 and Table 2). However, the game’s impact on an audience without prior exposure to educational activities remains a concern. Each answer in the game is followed by a brief explanation providing a rationale for the correct answer. The game has a “trial and error” approach that should be evaluated in comparison to the validation and questioning of one’s own knowledge represented by a correct answer. Do we learn more by confirming our knowledge or by making mistakes?

Regarding the gameplay experience, the repetitive nature of the questions, even when presented in a different order, was a point of criticism, as was the absence of an indefinitely increasing score, which some players felt reduced the game’s replay value. However, the primary goal of “Inundation” is education rather than entertainment. Ideally, after a few rounds, players should have gained enough knowledge of the phenomenon, potentially diminishing the need for repeated playthroughs. Nevertheless, the presence of mini-games helps maintain player interest across multiple sessions, as indicated by student feedback. Regarding the score, it should be noted that an indefinite increase would be unrealistic, as a 100% score indicates a “catastrophe” in human society, beyond which there is no worst-case scenario.

One of the most significant criticisms was the lack of an online multiplayer option. The game’s current structure, which involves automated turns and a slower pace, does not lend itself to online competition. Implementing multiplayer mode would require structural changes, such as simultaneous answers or creating a system where players take turns with reserve answers. Additionally, the inclusion of multiple players would require a large pool of questions and videos, potentially reducing the focus on mini-games unless all players “competed” in the same round. Finally, although this is a problem related to the difficulty in spreading the game, in the case of few users (“Inundation” has been downloaded by about ten thousand players), it would be more difficult to form a group of players.

5. Conclusions

Inundation is a game designed to engage the public, particularly young people, with the phenomenon of SLR and its implications on the coastal zone, human activities, and the environment. By adopting the serious game concept, it aims to educate users through an enjoyable, interactive experience that encourages learning through play. “Inundation” is likely the first game to focus explicitly on SLR. This unique positioning underscores its innovative approach to addressing an urgent environmental challenge.

A key strength of “Inundation” is its ability to captivate younger audiences, who are increasingly familiar with digital platforms. As a video game, it leverages this digital affinity to effectively engage users, making the learning process about SLR both interactive and enjoyable. Its compatibility across various operating systems and availability on major digital platforms further enhance its accessibility and potential reach. The inclusion of mini-games closely related to SLR adds an entertaining break while ensuring that educational content and messages promoting proactive attitudes are delivered in a way that maintains player interest and reinforces learning through varied gameplay.

The feedback from student beta-testers living in one of the sites included in the game’s narrative was instrumental in adjusting the game’s structure during development and forming an overall assessment of the game. Their insights revealed that the game’s engaging and interactive format sparked interest in the subject, a valuable achievement as it may positively influence players’ information-seeking behaviour [36].

Despite its strengths, “Inundation” faces certain challenges that may be addressed in future updates. Players reported a somewhat slow execution pace, which can impact the overall enjoyment of the game, and the limited number of questions, recycled in each session, can lead to a repetitive experience. Additionally, the absence of an online multiplayer feature limits the potential for competitive engagement, which could have further enriched the learning experience.

Overall, “Inundation” represents an advancement in serious gaming for environmental education. By focusing on sea level rise—a topic rarely, or never, covered by similar games—it offers a novel approach to raising awareness and fostering understanding of this pressing issue. The game’s innovative design, particularly its accelerated visual representation of sea level rise, addresses a significant challenge in awareness-raising: the slow pace of sea level rise compared to general perceptions of time. This approach has a great potential to enhance player understanding and engagement with the SLR issue, filling a gap in promoting resilience and preparedness among young audiences.

The sustainability of “Inundation” lies in its potential to instill a culture of disaster preparedness among young people. By engaging them through an interactive medium, serious games can promote long-term resilience.