Video games and cooperative methods in architecture and urban planning

"Building a model by defining rules allows us to change the components of the wall, the height of

the bricks, the shape of the curve, in the end generating a new unique Serpentine pavilion

without tediously remodelling everything." Biarke Ingels

Figure 42 Serpentine gallery pavilion by Biarke Ingels

In this sense architecture is about playing and experimenting with different possible forms, similarly to

construction video games which are open ended and that allow infinite compositions.

Video games and cooperative methods in architecture and urban planning.

In the last decade, video games are becoming platforms that support multiple players simultaneously,

being part of the same world. With the advancement of internet speed and the introduction of massively

multiplayer online games, (MMOGs), new virtual tools for forming social communities and virtual

networks have become available. On the other hand, architecture and urban design problems are

becoming more and more complex involving different stakeholders, which are asked to develop a shared

and feasible strategy of participatory architecture and planning, offering cooperation for a certain

project. Moreover, with the online work triggered by covid-19 lock down, the interest on cooperative

aspects of video games is growing in the field of architecture and urban design. Multiplayer games, in

fact offer not only communication tools between different players, but also the possibility to manipulate

the same space, to cooperate with alerts, and provide synergies for the design architecture or urban

space. According to Thomas Kvan (2000), the design process in architecture and the possibility of

collaboration during the design cycle can be enhanced through the use of different sort of realities. 3D

models of architecture are created to mimic physical reality and improve design perception and

communication. Similarly, to video game models, they are based on interactivity and information

layering that allows user to receive instant input, converse with objects and manipulate them in real

time which would otherwise be impossible in the real world. Bradford et al. (1994) coined the phrase

"Virtual Design Studio" and recognized communication as a vital aspect for design in new architecture.

A prominent body of research is the work the Bangalore-based research group "Fields of view". They

experimented with many participatory architectural and urban planning projects engaging various

groups of interest. By providing feedback and presenting alternatives, each group or individual becomes

a part of the city game. It was able to experiment with numerous design options using game technology.

Players can try out alternative policies and procedures, watch patterns evolve in real time, and contrast

different emerging scenarios.

Figure 43 City games of research groups "Fields of view’ and “PlayTheCity”

Another Amsterdam-based research group, “PlayTheCity”, formed by architect and PhD Game Designer

Ekim Tan, draws connections between the video game "Dungeons and Dragons" and engagement and

participatory planning, employing numerous rules as tools in the urban game. Cities nowadays are

complex settings impacted by a variety of actors. In the "Playthecity" research, different players are

asked to play a specific role in modifying their surroundings via negotiating, forging partnerships, and so

on. The game help to generate collaborative solutions.

In architecture, Winy Maas, of Dutch MVRDV design studio, in the 2017thDutch Design Week, through

an built installation named "(W)ego", reflected on the urban development of the last decades and

proposed new forms of habitation that satisfy the desires and egos of each resident in the fairest

possible way. (W)ego house is made up of personalized units that can be moves in different

configurations similar to Tetris configuration and based on a participatory design process in which each

inhabitant present, contest, and negotiate his desire.

This idea was pushed forward by research institute “The Why Factory” (T?F) founded by MVRDV. It investigates development possibilities focusing on the creation of architecture and urban models.

“The Why Factory” explored the topic of density and desires, investigation on the possibility of typological diversity in multifamily housing5 . On the one hand, they set a high-rise construction envelope as the housing

block's development boundary, while on the other hand, individuals claim space based on their desires,

discuss, negotiate, and fight with one another to find solutions that meet their needs. Players can conquer

space in a variety of ways, go up, down, negotiating, fighting, and so on. They experimented with various

rules within this framework. Researchers tested four different urban negotiation video game models: Blind,

Strategic, Automanton, and Trading, in which players engage at the same time to achieve their desired

objective. In the Automaton model, the conflict takes place without the user's involvement, and the

architect loses control of the design since the software entirely takes over and represents your aspirations.

In Bling model, the moves of the user are not visible to other users.

Figure 44 WEgo project, by “The Why Factory”

Figure 45 Four urban negotiation games in Wego project: Blind, Strategic, Automanton, Trading

5‘Double House’, Wilhelminapark, Utrecht, 1997. MVRDV + de Architectengroep, in Volume 51: Augmented Technology.