Ed Annunziata loves the ocean.
“I can hear the waves right now!” He tells me from his home on the coast of Northern California. “When I moved from New York, I knew I needed to live by the ocean. I was always captivated by the dichotomy of its beauty and the dangers it harbors. What is more frightening than something swimming from the darkness towards you? However, what is it? more beautiful than a coral reef full of life?
It is an idea reflected in Annuziata’s games, most notably, Ecco, his beloved series about a dolphin fighting to save the ecosystem and its kind of mysterious aliens and human oppression. It is often considered one of the first environmental games of the ocean, but even Ecco could not predict the threat that plastic pollution would pose.
“When I walk along the beach, I see plastic bottles and wrappers left by beach visitors on weekends,” says Annunziata. “It is heartbreaking to know that plastic garbage will float in the ocean for 1000 years.”
Plastic is a problem, and the same is true for the video game industry. Whether it’s our consoles, our PCs, our game packages or just a bottle of water that is thrown in a convention, it’s not just our responsibility, but we certainly have some of the blame.
“The plastic is useful. It’s tough. It’s safe. It’s known. Manufacturers are known. Costs are known. Retailers can place it on a shelf and stack it. It’s used everywhere,” explains Miles Jacobson, director of study of Sports Interactive “Physical games are not the only place in the chain where plastic is used. And it is crazy to think that game downloads are not plastic. There is plastic on your consoles, your computer, your modem, cables. The plastic is in everywhere. And, again, it’s useful. “
In 2019, Sports Interactive, in association with Sega, positioned itself in plastic, saving 20 tons through green packaging for its physical release of Football Manager 2020. This eventually led to Sega’s announcement that all of its European PC launches will now adopt that packing
“We use a reinforced recycled card, a recyclable shrink wrap using a material called LDPE (low density polyethylene) that most UK councils can collect at the edge of the gutter, printed with water and vegetable based inks, and recycled paper for the manual. If you take out the disc, you can put the rest in the recycling bin in your home, “explains Jacobson. “We also had to make sure that the data on the disks were safe, that they looked good on people’s collections and on retail shelves without the need for retailers to relocate their stores. We also hope that weight reduction means which becomes greener to transport our games around the world too. “
Although it is a positive step for the industry, the production of organic packaging presents its own difficulties, such as cost. The packaging of Football Manager 2020 was 30% more expensive to produce, but Sega reports that this increase is offset to some extent by the reduction of fuel costs due to the weight in transport and the reduction of destruction costs due to its recyclability. Manufacturing is also an important consideration. Peripheral gaming companies, ABP and A4T, also partnered in 2019, but with an even more extreme approach, saving 60 tons of plastic by redesigning their 4Gamers and Stealth product packaging to be 100% plastic free, in a process which took more than a year of preparation and research.
“In general, we saw a limited financial impact on the business. It was a joint venture with our factories to find sustainable packaging resources; those that did not compromise product quality within our cost models. Possibly the highest cost for the business It was on time he invested to obtain new suppliers and to test those new materials, “says Laura O & # 39; Donohue, commercial director of ABP. “It’s a change that all ABP agreed that had to happen and, in fact, any way we can help or advise competitors to do the same, we will do it. The fewer companies in the gaming industry (or any industry ) produce plastic packaging, the better. “
In a year, a soccer management simulator and two relatively small gaming accessories companies saved 80 tons of plastic from filling landfills or littering the ocean, without a major impact on their profits. Do you consider how much Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo could save if they changed their packaging? And most importantly, why haven’t they done it? Laura O & # 39; Donohue speculates that it could be the final result, and the responsibility of the CEOs to the shareholders, which requires a collective decision, which must also be binary, because, as O & # 39; Donohue says: “basically you have to put the planet before profit. ” But Jacobson believes it is probably also a matter of how long it takes to implement the changes.
“If all the games, music and film companies changed, it would be millions of tons a year. And I still believe that it will be, the way we are installed with Sega means that we can be incredibly agile as a business, while for most the largest companies, and even Sega as a whole, cannot move as fast as we do.Our packaging solution is more expensive than the standard, and many departments in large companies will simply say & # 39; no & # 39; to the accountants when I want to spend more. But there are many discussions in all the entertainment industries that include many very large retailers, about greener packaging. But although I am frustrated by the speed and time it will take, I am very encouraged by the conversations in which I have been involved and I think things will change quite quickly for a corporate environment. “
Perhaps due to the pressure of consumers and their nature as people leading the events, gaming conventions are an area where these sustainability conversations seem to have consolidated. A significant number of events and places have imposed sustainability practices that range from the recycling of food waste to energy efficiency and the construction of recyclable systems for convention stands.
“Plastic is a very important part of total waste production, which can be amazing in large-scale events like ours,” explains Susanna Pollack, president and producer of the Games for Change Festival, the largest gaming event in New York. . “It all begins with a very critical thought about what ends up in the hands of our assistants, be it a plate, a program, a badge. In the past, it was easy to justify each of these single-use plastics given its aggregate & # 39; convenience for attendees, but more and more we realize that the audience responds positively to the steps taken to reduce the use of plastic, especially as more attendees become aware of their own consumption. The most important thing is to think in a creative and critical way about what you are putting in the hands of people, and whether or not there is a more sustainable alternative, however, it always helps to align with stakeholders that feel equally strong: ask your place about their flows of recycling work, or ask your suppliers about alternative utensils. ”
(embed) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABAtHAUrNnk (/ embed)
Games for Change’s work with Boxed Water and the ban on single-use plastics is just one example of many sustainability initiatives for game conventions. At Microsoft Future Decoded in London, the consumption of plastics was replaced by porcelain cups and glass bottles and the carpets used during the event were later recycled. Many places also pursue similar practices, including ExCel London’s collaboration with retailers to offer discounts to customers with reusable coffee cups, or Koelnmesse’s focus on resource efficiency, with 90% of waste sent to recycling , the elimination of unnecessary carpets and the supply of disposal alternatives made of bioplastics such as PLA. It is still important to remember that the people with the greatest power to affect the sustainability of the conventions are us, either in terms of bringing reusable cups or in the proper disposal of waste.
Many of these important conversations regarding environmental practice and sustainability have taken place as part of Playing4thePlanet, an alliance co-founded by UN Environment, GRID-Arendal and Playmob, which has seen commitments from the entire gaming industry. These include Sony’s promise to introduce a low-power suspension mode for the PS5, Microsoft expanding its ongoing commitment to carbon neutrality, Green Man Gaming’s main tree planting initiatives, but most interesting of all, the introduction of & # 39; green shoves & # 39; that recognize the influence the games have in our perception of the world, and that is why we try to promote environmentally positive values through them. But Playing4thePlanet is not an organization that seeks to boost compliance with its companies, but rather to inspire them with the scope of the challenge.
“It’s less like driving, than gardening,” explains Dr. Trista Patterson, author of P4P. “We need to sow important conversations, create fertile conditions especially for the first to push up and start growing, draw attention to the factors that have helped that emergency, as well as barriers, encourage innovators and collaborators, and resort to those who have networks, motivations and are similarly inspired. It is important that this is a positive, organic and voluntary process and that it is as rewarding for each participant as it is fun, because it represents a huge and significant challenge. Cross fertilization both within of companies as between companies (even in such an ultra competitive industry) is a really fertile ground to win and win, but also win-win-win PLUS wins planetary. If P4P can withstand the emergence of that time, I will be very proud. ” .
Playing4thePlanet has made some incredible commitments regarding carbon reduction and climate change, but less in terms of plastics. Currently, Sports Interactive’s packaging commitment is the only one that explicitly refers to plastics. At the end of 2019, Sony launched its own initiative in the project & # 39; One Blue Ocean & # 39 ;, with the aim of reducing single-use plastics in the workplace and, to some extent, in their packaging in all the company. Sony also aims to reduce the amount of plastics based on virgin oil per unit of product by 10% in 2020, and promote the design for recycling, as it was transmitted to me by Sony Corporate. Throughout the life of the PS4, aspects of its sustainability have also improved, including the replacement of its internal packaging with cardboard and, along with Nintendo, the labeling of plastic components to aid in recyclability. But consoles continue to reflect the greatest environmental concern of our industry.
The massive size of the Xbox X series and the potential increase in energy consumption of 67% raise concerns about its performance boost, and could be seen as an unusual move considering Microsoft’s recent commitment to be carbon negative by 2030 And in terms of a revealing environmental environment Accounting / deconstruction of the PS4, Lewis Gordon did exactly that for The Verge. As Gordon perfectly illustrates in that article, understanding the entire process, from production to waste management, is vital for consumers, both in terms of expressing comments and holding companies accountable for their environmental practices. It may often seem that, as consumers, we have no power to impact the corporate process, but that could not be further from the truth.
“People forget that they really vote with their purchases, and this vote is amplified when they explain to others their decisions and things that excite them about a company or product,” says Trista Patterson. “We see that with the first users of Playing4thePlanet, there has been a lot of observation of feelings, so there are really positive, detailed and informed comments. A very well written and researched blog post, using the correct hashtags, pointing to a gap of very specific knowledge and offering possible solutions (not just criticism) can have as much corporate impact as 10 articles in the mainstream media. I’ve seen it happen. “
It is within our power to hold companies accountable, and we should do it, because now it is a more important time than ever to do so. The desire for alternatives and sustainability in the gaming industry is evident, as well as collaborations between companies that reflect organizations such as Playing4thePlanet. If you consider that most of the events that I have mentioned here have occurred in the last 5 months, it is easy to recognize that the plastic in our industry is at a turning point, that attitude can be transformed into a generalized action.
“As far as the future is concerned, I have certainly noticed a tidal shift in the & # 39; acceptability & # 39; of talking about climate and environmental goals within corporate goals. CEOs have stated that while they may have been investing in innovation and impact or efficiency goals for a long time, they didn’t feel comfortable having that as part of their public platform until about last year. It was certainly easier for CEOs to talk so much than just one, “reflects Trista Patterson. “People forget that these CEOs are humans with children, grandchildren, friends, family and colleagues around the world. The scientific consensus is very clear to them, they see that the climate and other problems develop at headquarters and in the properties of their companies around the world. ” , and increasingly incorporated into the company’s risk assessments, financial statements and balance sheets. I have heard many CEOs expressing their appreciation for the opportunity to create more good in the world, and also meet with some pairs of galaxy brains to see what else they could address. “
In any case, Sega’s announcement shows that large companies no longer have any excuse for not acting proven alternatives friendly to the environment. The only consideration now should be the time it will take to implement them. It is possible that many companies are already in the process of making those changes, but I don’t think that means that we, as consumers, should inherently rely on what they are doing.
If these initiatives show one thing, the change requires people who are willing to stand up: CEOs and companies that will take that & # 39; binary choice & # 39; as Laura O & # 39; Donohue calls it, to place the environment before profits, or in fact, any other difficulties they might face: whether shareholders, consumer sentiment, or just waiting for support. “It is worth paying a price,” says Miles Jacobson, “to help secure the future of the planet.”
