Playing for the Planet
We partnered with Playing for the Planet, an initiative of UNEP and NRDC's Rewrite the Future to build a new resource for game developers: “Beyond the Endgame: How Climate and Nature Enhance Game Narratives”
Publilshed by Playing For The Planet, this guidance for video game storytellers empowers developers to identify and harness opportunities to integrate themes of climate, nature, and the environment into narratives to reach new levels of commercial and critical success, all while inspiring positive change for our planet.
Researched and authored in collaboration with Context Collaborative and NRDC's Rewrite the Future, this is a guide for studios who want to tell powerful, engaging, and commercially successful stories that speak to current audiences about the world we’re living in.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Climate informed narratives in games are a powerful creative and commercial opportunity, with players increasingly seeking stories, characters, and worlds that reflect real environmental challenges and hopes for possible futures.
Research shows players not only care deeply about climate issues but also reward studios that integrate these themes authentically into narrative, worldbuilding, and core mechanics. In Playing for the Planet’s 2022 survey of 380,000 players across 11 titles, 81% said they want more environmental content in games.
Climate themes are also already showing up in commercial and critical hits like Horizon Forbidden West and Civilization VI. Final Fantasy VII, lauded as “one of the most resonant environmental stories of all time”, has sold over 15 million copies, with its ongoing remake trilogy not far behind.
Such games demonstrate that environmental context can enhance immersio and emotional stakes across every genre, enabling studios to innovate, differentiate their IP, and empower players with meaningful agency in both the virtual and real world.
