A cooperative storytelling card game for conflict resolution and empathy

Abstract

In this paper we present a prototype for a cooperative storytelling card game focusing on the resolution of conflict and empathy in a narrative. The story-making process in the proposed prototype design is based on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and consists of five types of story cards(characters, setting, objects/actions, goals, and emotions) as its story elements. We have developed and tested a prototype game using Unity3D game engine on an Android platform with two play modes - single-player and multi-player. In the multi-player mode, three players can play together: each player is assigned the role of an initiator, a conflictor and a mediator in wireless network environments. Our ultimate goal is to encourage players to empathize with other players by letting them create and resolve (or mediate) emotional conflicts through the process of perspective-taking in a collaborative storytelling game. © Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020.