P.T.G!

Rural areas face challenges like isolation and an aging population, making it hard to retain young residents. Technology and gamified solutions connect people and places and for this reason can contribute to address these issues, also boosting motivation and engagement. 

The games industry and gamification are increasingly prevalent, benefiting various sectors and aligning with regional strategies for innovation. Gamified solutions can also tackle rural challenges, fostering socio-economic growth and community building. At the individual level, gamification reduces loneliness and promotes inclusivity with low accessibility barriers.

P.T.G! vision is to make rural regions attractive for game development, ensuring the industry's and region's sustainable growth and inclusiveness.

The missing link is a games industry and gamification ecosystem that is vibrant and supportive. It is needed to reap the benefits for government, company, education, research, NGO, and citizen stakeholder groups.

Prepare. To. Gamify! Ecosystem Building will validate the interest in and need for a main project to develop the ecosystem.

P.T.G! evaluates rural areas' efforts to develop games industry and gamification ecosystems through stakeholder interviews and co-creation workshops using SWOT analysis.

Results are summarised to identify best practices and gaps, informing the feasibility of main projects.

Various ecosystem models are benchmarked to combine digital platforms and physical spaces, aiming to create a feasible ecosystem canvas model.

Key stakeholders are benchmarked for collaboration, aligning with regional strategies for increased competitiveness.

The project adopts a horizontal and multidisciplinary approach to ideation and stakeholder mapping, aiming to build on each region's strengths.

This work will lead to a Main project application.

Collaboration between rural regions in Finland, Sweden, and Ireland can significantly bolster the games industry by merging diverse talent pools, sharing resources and expertise, and attracting investments. P.T.G! aims to facilitate market expansion and drive joint RDI initiatives.