Abstract
Abstract Playing video games is often perceived as the antithesis of engaging with, and learning about, the natural world. Nevertheless, there is growing recognition that digital media is now a central part of many people's lives. This has led to increased efforts to harness the power and popularity of digital games for both ecological education and conservation advocacy. Games designed for educational purposes may be perceived as too niche, or have insufficient resources, to reach wider audiences. In contrast, big budget video games reach many millions of players, but are generally designed for entertainment rather than education. Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2), a Western‐themed action‐adventure game, is one such product. Nevertheless, due to its detailed, open‐world simulation of late 19th century North American ecosystems, it provides opportunities for players to learn about real‐world wildlife. We surveyed self‐described gamers who both had, and had not, played RDR2. Participants undertook a wildlife identification quiz focusing on 15 species depicted in the game. We also asked participants about their self‐reported learning and experiences of playing RDR2. We found that participants who had played RDR2 correctly identified more species in the quiz, with this improvement enhanced by having completed the game's main storyline, played more recently or played online in a ‘Naturalist’ role. The difference in performance was greatest for ungulate and fish species which have high in‐game utility value. In addition to species identification, participants reported learning about animal behaviours and interspecies interactions. Their most memorable experiences were associated with RDR2's immersive environment and ability to provoke emotional responses. We conclude that big‐budget video games can have educational as well as entertainment value and should be taken seriously by educators, ecologists and conservationists as a communicative force. A free Plain Language Summary can be found within the Supporting Information of this article.
Highlights
Digital technologies have a potentially significant role in the future of education (Barab & Luehmann, 2003; Tewksbury et al, 2014), in communicating with learners via media to which they are accustomed (Annetta, 2009)
This study aimed to investigate whether immersion in the virtual environment of Red Dead Redemption 2 (RDR2) and Red Dead Online (RDO) teaches players about the real-world wildlife and ecology of their setting, and how
Despite RDR2 not being designed as an educational game, it can improve players' ability to identify the North American species it features, for both players in North American and those elsewhere in the world
Summary
Digital technologies have a potentially significant role in the future of education (Barab & Luehmann, 2003; Tewksbury et al, 2014), in communicating with learners via media to which they are accustomed (Annetta, 2009). Video games are an underexplored and underused educational tool As they increase in complexity, they can provide immersive, sensory learning environments (Squire, 2011). Research with higher education students has found that video games require players to exercise and improve a range of skills including communication, adaptability and resourcefulness (Barr, 2017, 2018). Despite this potential, most efforts to use them in educational settings have been limited to teaching about coding and game design (Squire, 2008), rather than exploiting the possibilities of gaming to immerse players in complex learning environments and teach them about a wider range of subjects. Recent examples include Kakapo Run (Dunn & Veríssimo, 2020), designed to entertain while raising awareness of the plight of the kakapo Strigops habroptilus, and the forthcoming Wildchain (http://wildchain.io), in which players donate funds to digitally adopt virtual representatives of real endangered animals
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