Designing Videogames For a More Mindful World

Can gaming help people overcome stress and struggles of life? What happens if the design of modern technology is informed by the wisdom of ancient spiritual awakening practices? Videogames are a powerful technology for organizing and altering attention structures. Instead of directing a player's attention outward upon a world to be mastered, though, attention could be oriented to the core: the player's own inward experience of being. This represents a shift in the fundamental paradigms of game design, stepping through archetype and into the study of trance. Technologies that make this shift offer users a feeling of presence and peace, promoting empowerment in difficult life situations and the development of deeper wisdom.