Game space

gamelab.berlin highlights how interactive worlds drive society and technology forward

A woodcutter goes about his work. A fisherman hauls in his net. Loaves of bread are stacked high at the market, while nearby shutters rattle open. A small town awakens. However, this town is not somewhere in Brandenburg, but on an artificial island in the middle of a virtual ocean. Welcome to Anno 1404, one of the most successful city-building games of recent decades.

For Christian Stein, this fascination has grown into an entire field of research. The computer scientist and German philologist is the head of gamelab.berlin, based at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, where he focuses on game design, interactivity and the question of how digital game mechanics shape education, society and technology. For him, one thing is clear: “Games pull us out of the role of passive spectators. We co-create worlds, make decisions and experiment with scopes for action.”

For Stein, this is also the reason why games now have such a profound impact on society: “Millions of people have grown up with these game worlds. For an entire generation, games are a core part of cultural socialisation.” Economically, too, the sector carries significant weight. Major productions employ several hundred specialists over many years. Globally, the gaming industry now generates more revenue than the film and music industries combined.

Much of this potential has yet to be realised in Germany. Berlin, however, could score points: with creative talent, an active scene and, soon, the planned House of Games as a central hub for studios, exchange and visibility. Stein is convinced: “If you take gaming seriously, you also have to create the infrastructure to support it.”

Even as a teenager, he did not just want to play games but to understand how they work. “Games are what led me to computer science,” he admits. Today he investigates how interactivity enables new forms of storytelling. This is precisely where he sees the innovative potential: Games do not merely adopt new technologies—they often help drive them forward. “Whether artificial intelligence, virtual reality or simulation,” he explains, “many new technologies are tested in games earlier than in other fields.” Game designers operate at the intersection of technology, storytelling and psychology, developing systems that motivate people, keep them engaged and prompt them to act.

That is precisely why gamelab.berlin is more than a mere research lab for game design. It is an interdisciplinary platform where new applications take shape—ranging from healthcare and science communication to social work. Two projects illustrate just how broad the spectrum is. Under the moniker EXGAVINE, Stein and his team developed virtual-reality games for people with dementia—a field that scarcely features in the mainstream games industry. “We had to adapt the game design because some players forgot they were in a virtual environment,” he says. At the same time, the project revealed just how much potential such applications hold.

In a project named BLOOMS, players are put in the role of algae, allowing them to experience how underwater ecosystems change when, for example, warm wastewater is discharged. “Many visitors told us afterwards that it was the first time they had really understood the issue,” says the computer scientist, gladly. Research, however, is not restricted to the lab. Through the company Playersjourney, which emerged from gamelab.berlin, Stein brings these ideas into practice—in museums, foundations and educational institutions.

When Stein plays Anno in the evening, it is not just for the pleasure of strategy. It is also a glimpse of the potential of his own field of research: a way of engaging with the world that is active, playful and creative. Games, he says, fostered skills that matter across many areas of life—communication, problem-solving and the ability to shift perspectives. “In play, we learn things that often remain hidden to us otherwise. And often we don’t even realise that we are learning,” says the researcher and business founder. This, he believes, is the true strength of a medium that has long since arrived at the heart of society. Anyone wanting to talk about the future of technology, education and participation will not be able to ignore gaming.

Kai Dürfeld for Potenzial

gamelab.berlin | Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin