The Cranky Uncle game uses cartoons and critical thinking to fight misinformation. The game was developed by Monash University scientist John Cook, in collaboration with creative agency Goodbeast. The game is now available for free on iPhone, Android, and as a browser game.
The game was first crowd-funded and developed at George Mason University, with version 1.0 launching in December 2020. Version 2.0 was launched a year later, featuring multiple languages. Anyone interested in helping with our efforts to translate the game into different languages, please sign up to indicate your interest.
Building public resilience against misinformation
Developing solutions to misinformation is more important than ever in this post-truth era where science and facts are under constant assault. A key solution to making the public more resilient against fake news is inoculation – avoid being misled by learning the techniques of denial.
In the Cranky Uncle game, players are mentored by a cartoon personification of climate science denial. Cranky Uncle explains 14 techniques of science denial, from fake experts to cherry picking and a variety of different logical fallacies.
Using gamification to practice critical thinking
Cook’s research has focused on critical thinking as a tool for building public resilience against misinformation. “The challenge is critical thinking is hard,” explains Cook. “That’s where the combined effect of humor and games are so powerful – they engage players and get them practising critical thinking through gameplay.” The deeper a player gets into the game, the more resilient they become against misinformation.
This (non-profit) game will be available in classrooms and to the general public around the world, on iPhone and Android. We use gameplay elements such as interactive quizzes and reward feedback to engage players, taking them deeper into the game — the longer they play, the more resilient they become against climate misinformation.
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