Game developers have real power to tackle the climate crisis.

The IGDA Climate Special Interest Group (IGDA Climate SIG) serves to unlock grassroots climate action, enable climate councils within major game companies, and amplify the UN Environment Programme’s message about youth advocacy, the power of video games, and what games can do to address the climate crisis.

We are an open community that seeks to build a safe and inclusive space for game industry professionals who are concerned about climate change. Community care is the lifeblood of our SIG culture, and we welcome feelings of grief, joy, frustration, excitement, anxiety, and anything in-between. By building a strong community that demonstrates what we want to see and feel in the world, we are also directly re-defining our industry’s culture of competition and burnout.

Want to join the discussion? Our SIG primarily communicates over Discord, in the IGDA Climate SIG server.

Use this link to join: bit.ly/igdaclimatesig.

We have regular online events for focus groups and meet & greets. Our Monthly Community Call is a good place to start if you’d like to get involved!

So, why should game studios care about climate change?

• The gaming industry has a significant impact on the climate. High end, graphically intensive games demand tremendous computing power for the real time calculations of physics, AI, and 3D graphics that players want. How green the energy that powers these games might be depends on the end user’s location and how their municipality generates electricity. In 2023, Epic Games reduced Fortnite’s power consumption by 73 GWh per year – equivalent to 14 wind turbines running for a year – through graphical changes imperceptible to players.

• Games can help address a gap in climate communications. Culture plays a vital role in the transition to a sustainable society, and is widely recognized as a missing piece of broader climate action. With their immense global reach, games are well-positioned to enable transformation through shared imaginaries. In 2022, the IGDA Climate SIG published the Environmental Game Design Playbook as a landmark resource connecting environmental psychology with game design. The Playbook is currently being used in the game design curriculums of several universities, including Carnegie Mellon, Uppsala University, and the Cologne Game Lab.

• Players are increasingly concerned about climate change. In the U.S., a majority of players “say that the gaming industry has a responsibility to act” on climate change. Nearly half of players say they have rewarded companies that are taking steps to mitigate climate change, and 4 in 10 players say they have avoided buying products from companies opposed to climate action. Game studios can be proactive and build trust with their consumer base by showing their commitment to climate action. To this end, dozens of studios have already joined the Playing for the Planet Alliance.

Featured resources:

Please see additional resources below. We hope to see you soon in our community!