Food system games for sustainability transformation – A review

Interactive serious games can help facilitate sustainable food system transformation that many stakeholders deem necessary, due to their potential of capturing system complexity, stimulating dialogue, and exploring strategies in different scenarios. However, to what extent such games capture multiple food system components has yet to be established. We therefore conducted a systematic review of the literature on multiple food system component coverage in games and to assess their potential use in guiding sustainable food system transformation. We found 19 games that covered at least two food system components, of which eight addressed sustainable food system outcomes. Two of these games had the potential of covering rather all food system components and allowing reflection on economic, societal and environmental outcomes. Other games did not cover all components but did make either strong connections between the ones that were included or linked outcomes to multiple sustainability dimensions. For use in food system transformation, most games showed potential in transforming mindsets of a niche group of food system actors. However, only two could be played with a diverse group of stakeholders, of which one could additionally be applied in the political landscape. Future research should focus on further capturing system complexity within games to support imagining and evaluating effects of various strategies. By playing these games with different stakeholders, they could then have the potential to address the plurality of perspectives, cross disciplines and co-create strategies needed for food system transformation.