A Better World: Philly-Created Facebook Game Inspires Good Deeds

Gaming for Skillful

A local family unit'southward Facebook game has encouraged more than 4 million people to practice 40 million good deeds, both real and virtual

May. 19, 2016

What if you could greet a new neighbor, cheque in on a friend, pet your dog, note what yous're grateful for, write down your dreams, say a prayer for a sick family member, redecorate your business firm and recycle—all while sitting at your desk? Oh, and what if by doing all of that, you also are contributing to clemency—and scoring points?

You could—if you played A Better World, a Facebook game started past Wayne entrepreneurs, MarySue, Ray and Gregory Hansell. The game, played by 4 meg people in 100 countries, is a twist on two phenomena—gaming and social media. In A Better Earth, players accelerate through doing good and helping others, either through expressing gratitude and doing virtual good deeds or through recording good deeds they've washed in real life.

When the gaming community has earned enough virtual points, the Hansells advantage the actual world with a donation to charity. So far, the family has given over $fifty,000 to over xx charitable organizations, both international and local.

The Hansells call this "cause gaming," a concept reflected in the game's motto: "Where all good deeds are rewarded, and existent world causes are supported."

MarySue and Ray Hansell were successful entrepreneurs for years, with a consulting firm, and an international marketing and client support phone call middle that employed thousands of Philadelphia-region employees. Hansell says he was not particularly clemency-minded. But after 20 years of running businesses in the area, he had started looking for a way to requite back.

In 2009, their son Gregory was ready to bring together the family business. He had a stiff background in philosophy and faith, and had worked in several think tanks that served the public good. He was also a techie, and in the fall of that year talked Ray into going to San Francisco for a technology conference.

The game, played past four million people in 100 countries, is a twist on ii phenomena—gaming and social media. In A Better World, players advance through doing proficient and helping others, either through expressing gratitude and doing virtual good deeds or through recording good deeds they've done in real life.

Father and son saw the "amazing explosion of casual social games," Ray Hansell says. They came back intrigued past the possibilities these kinds of games might offer and recognized an untapped opportunity. Many say the ascension of social networks has made today'southward youth ever more isolated and selfish. The Hansells, though, saw Facebook every bit a tool that could bring people together, that has within information technology "an inherent altruism" that no ane had used earlier. They wanted to make a game that would practise skilful.

In A Better Earth, players choose an avatar for themselves, move into a virtual business firm and so go virtually the virtual neighborhood doing good deeds, connecting with others, and investing in their homes. They earn "Practise-Good Gold" every time they written report doing a good deed, either in the game or in real life—everything from helping others to expressing gratitude, recycling or altruistic to a good cause.

"It was important to united states that players weren't just doing good behind a screen," says Hansell. "Nosotros wanted to cross that 'virtual-actual' divide and accept players doing skilful in existent life as well equally in the virtual world."

The game challenges players to perform acts of kindness in the real earth, and then earn points by sharing that in-game with pictures and posts. In their virtual neighborhood, meanwhile, players can affect the real world in an surface area called "Positive Mail," which lets them send actual "Get Well" cards to kids recovering from surgeries through the nonprofit Cure International.

To date, players of A Ameliorate World have performed 40 million good deeds, both virtual and existent.

"Unlike other video games, it's not violent, it's not about slaying the dragon," says Hansell. "It'southward about encouraging generosity, gratitude, and kindness."

"It's fitting that this game started in Philadelphia," Hansell says, "because it emanates from our history as the Urban center of Brotherly Love. To harness the ability of technology and its innate power to exercise random acts of kindness out there in the world, that'due south a Philadelphia idea."

Each month the Hansells pick a clemency, and the charity names a number that would permit it to move forward on a substantive initiative. If players of A Ameliorate World collectively do a predetermined number of good deeds, the clemency receives the sizable donation they asked for. A Better Globe collaborates both with big national charities like CURE International and local Philadelphia-area charities similar the Vetri Customs Partnership, which provides fresh school lunches for kids in under-resourced areas, and Functioning Warm, which distributes new coats to children during the wintertime.

This calendar month's charity is Emily'south Entourage, which is looking for a cure for Cystic Fibrosis; if players do 250,000 skillful deeds in May, the Hansells will donate $1,000 to the crusade. Players can see the total progress towards the monthly goal, which encourages them to go along working hard to meet information technology.

A Meliorate World is complimentary to users—who tend to be women age 13 to 65, Hansell reports—but as they play the game, go more invested, and want to change their avatar or home community, that costs existent life dollars. The game, like most other Facebook games, is funded on this model as well equally through advertising. The Hansells, who will not say how much coin they have made with the game, use these upgrade fees to fund A Better Globe's charitable giving.

The success of the Facebook game led the Hansells to launch a version of A Better Earth for younger children, to play on a tablet.They likewise host a weekly interview program called BetterWorldians Radio, available to stream, where they profile innovators doing work in line with the mission of A Better Globe, like author and CEO of World Relief, Stephen Bauman, and Denise Day, CEO of the YMCA of Greater Brandywine.

Like their game, the Hansells have created a company that is a bridge, a "social enterprise" that pairs doing well financially with doing good in the world. They aim to create a ameliorate business concern world, as well, with the belief that "companies can profit while making a deviation."

Hansell says he'due south received thousands of thank you messages from families all over the world who capeesh the bulletin of the game, particularly from parents who enjoy playing the game with their kids. Next for A Ameliorate World is expanding internationally, into other languages, like Castilian, French and Portuguese.

"It's plumbing fixtures that this game started in Philadelphia," Hansell says, "because it emanates from our history as the Metropolis of Brotherly Love. To harness the power of technology and its innate power to do random acts of kindness out there in the world, that'south a Philadelphia idea."

A previous version of this story implied A Better Earth could be played on a phone; it is only a desktop game. It also misstated where to detect BetterWorldians Radio; it streams here.

Photograph Header: Courtesy of A Improve Earth

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Source: https://thephiladelphiacitizen.org/a-better-world-facebook-game/

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