Game‐Making for Cultural Change and Empowered Youth Participation

Background: Game-making has the potential to foster cultural participation and empowerment, yet its role as a form of culture-
making remains underexplored. Existing approaches to cultural engagement often overlook the creative and participatory pos-
sibilities of game-making for addressing pressing cultural challenges and promoting youth inclusivity and empowerment in
cultural heritage. This study highlights the importance of game-making as a meaningful strategy for cultural preservation and
transformation.
Objectives: The article investigates how game-making, particularly through cultural game jams, can promote cultural partici-
pation, youth empowerment and support cultural innovation.
Methods: The study is grounded in a design-based research methodology and examines the design, development and implemen-
tation of three cultural game jams within the EPIC-WE project. It employs a case study approach, analysing game jam practices
through the lens of cultural participation, empowerment and diversity/inclusivity, while exploring connections to youth citizens'
engagement in cultural heritage.
Results and Conclusions: The findings show that cultural game jams can inspire and empower youth citizens to engage with
cultural and societal issues through game-making. This paper contributes to the ongoing dialogue on leveraging games and
game-making to transform culture and society by discussing the significant role of game-making in promoting cultural aware-
ness, value-based imagination and youth engagement with cultural and societal issues.