+SPACES: Serious Games for Role-Playing Government Policies

This chapter explores how role-play simulations in virtual worlds can be used to support policy discussion and refinement. Although the work described is set primarily within the context of policy formulation for government, the lessons learnt are applicable to online learning and collaboration within virtual environments. The chapter focuses on the most challenging part of the project, which is to provide environments that can simulate some of the complexities of the physical world. Some examples of different approaches to simulation in virtual spaces are provided and the issues associated with them are further examined. We conclude that the use of role-play simulations seem to offer the most benefits in terms of providing a generalizable framework for citizens to engage with real issues arising from future policy decisions.