25. Level Up Your Impact: Dr Michelle Chen on using video games for knowledge mobilisation

Knowledge mobilisationResearch translationVideo gamesCo-designInteractivity
Written By Chris Pahlow

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Episode show notes

Video games for research?!? Dr Michelle Chen explains how games can be powerful tools for knowledge mobilisation, and how you can get started making them.

Michelle has a PhD in design from RMIT University and she's the founder of Mental Jam, a platform for sharing lived experiences of mental health struggles through video game co creation.

She shares insights on why researchers should consider video games as a medium for translation and dissemination, and provides a step-by-step guide on how to create games from research — even if you're not a coder or designer.

"Unlike traditional media, which is like TVs or movies or books, where you're just reading something and consuming something passively, the interactive nature video games really helps people become more immersed… You can go even deeper, and really break things down, and see how you can find common things from games that can be applied to your research and help people learn it in a more fun way." — Michelle Chen

This episode is a must-listen for any researcher looking to make their work more engaging and accessible. Even if you’ve never considered making a game before, Michelle offers practical advice on how to get you started.

Our conversation covers:

  • Why video games are an effective medium for research dissemination

  • How to start designing a game based on your research

  • The benefits of co-design and participatory research in game development

  • Practical steps for researchers with no game development experience

  • How to find collaborators for your game project

  • Platforms for distributing your finished game

  • The pros and cons of the startup route versus traditional academic pathways

Practical tips from this episode:

  • Start small and simple: Follow a tutorial to create a basic game before attempting more complex projects.

  • Think beyond traditional dissemination: Consider how your research can be transformed into interactive experiences that engage users more deeply.

    • "You can make it like a chocolate covered broccoli, or it's just like a interactive quiz that's fun, or you can go even deeper, and really break things down, and see how your research can be, like, how you can find common things from games that can be applied to your research and help people learn it in a more fun way." — Dr Michelle Chen

  • Embrace collaboration: Work with game design students or developers to bring your research to life in game form.

    • "I would really encourage researchers to collaborate with other people, with game developers... I mean, especially in Melbourne, it's such a big community. game community. There's so many game students graduating each year, so it wouldn't be hard for them to find somebody to collaborate with." — Dr Michelle Chen

  • Use participatory design: Involve your target audience in the game creation process from the early stages.

    • "I'm a big fan of participatory research and really co-design and co-creation. So, for me, I feel like if you're going to create something for a target demographic, it's really important to go to them as early as possible." — Dr Michelle Chen

  • Test early and often: Adopt an agile approach, constantly testing and iterating your game as you develop it.

    • "As you're building, you are testing. So as you're putting things together, you're constantly testing, basically, each week. And you're constantly getting feedback." — Dr Michelle Chen

    • "Instead of like working on something on your own for a long time and not even bringing it out and having it being tested by people. That's how you'll usually fail because you're working on something for years and years and you're only showing it to people at the very end. I feel that's already too late." — Dr Michelle Chen

  • Leverage existing platforms: Use platforms like Itch.io to easily distribute your game and reach a wider audience.

    • "I personally release all of the games online because I feel like that's even more accessible, and so I use a platform called Itch…" — Dr Michelle Chen

Credits:

  • Host & Producer: Chris Pahlow

  • Edited by: Laura Carolina Corrigan

  • Consulting Producers: Maia Tarrell, Michelle Joy

  • Music by: La Boucle and Blue Steel, courtesy of Epidemic Sound

Chris Pahlow
Chris Pahlow is an independent writer/director currently in post-production on his debut feature film PLAY IT SAFE. Chris has been fascinated with storytelling since he first earned his pen license and he’s spent the last ten years bringing stories to life through music videos, documentaries, and short films.
http://www.chrispahlow.com
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