英国研发气候变化主题电脑游戏

英国一家游戏开发公司本周一推出了一款以气候变化为主题的电脑游戏试用版，让每个玩家都能够参与到拯救世界的行动中。据介绍，这款游戏名为“世界的命运”，每个玩家都是国际环境组织的负责人，需要在不同的场景下寻求气候变暖、自然资源缺失以及人口不断增长等全球性问题的解决方法。与其它游戏不同的是，这款游戏为玩家提供的各种气候模式数据都是真实的，游戏在设计时也参考了英美经济学家和科学家的建议。环保组织对此类游戏的推出表示欢迎，称通过娱乐的方式增强人们的环境意识，同时了解相关知识是一个很有创意的做法。据悉，这款游戏的试用版将有3个月的反馈期，正式版将于明年2月面市。

Ever wondered how one person could save the planet from the effects of climate change? A British-made computer game on trial release on Monday creates different ways of doing just that.

'Fate of the World' puts the Earth's future in players' hands, placing them in charge of an international environmental body which could save the world from the effects of rising greenhouse gas emissions or let it perish by continuing to rely on emissions-heavy fossil fuels.

Through different scenarios, players can explore options such as geoengineering and alternative energy sources to save the planet from rising temperatures, dwindling natural resources and a growing population over the next 200 years.

A rough cut of the game will be followed by a three-month feedback period from players, with final release due in February next year.

Created by Oxford-based games developer Red Redemption, the game departs from more mainstream action games by using data from real climate models and advice from scientists and economists in Britain and the United States.

"Science data is often inaccessible and we are trying to put players in a position of power and connected with the issues," Gobion Rowlands, Red Redemption's founder and chairman told Reuters.

"We are not pushing one particular agenda. There are a range of options, including nuclear power and renewable energy. We are not saying one route is the best route," he added.

The firm has an advisory board which includes some climate change experts. Myles Allen, head of climate dynamics at Oxford University, contributed the prediction models in the game.

This year, a series of apparent flaws in climate science and the failure of UN talks to reach an international deal to cut greenhouse gas emissions appeared to undermine the public's interest in climate change.

However, games centered on sustainability and human rights have been growing in popularity and are welcomed by green groups as a way of raising awareness.

Using climate change as inspiration for entertainment shows the issue has permeated global culture, which can only be a good thing, Friends of the Earth's head of climate Mike Childs said. "We need creative industries to work with these big issues as the results can be immensely powerful and can help us to understand what a sustainable future looks and feels like," said Fiona Bennie, senior sustainability advisor at UK-based non-governmental organization Forum for the Future.