SWTW: Superstruct

Iain Simons

Published 10 October 2008

Each week Iain Simons finds you a game to while away a few hours at your desk. This week's Something for the weekend is Superstruct. Enjoy wisely...

Q: What does "superstruct" mean?

Su`per`struct´ v. t. 1.To build over or upon another structure; to erect upon a foundation.

The Institute for the Future is a think-tank based in California and on October 6th they launched their new project, Superstruct, which bills itself as the “World’s first massively multiplayer forecasting game.” If that sounds a little lofty, it’s because it is. Superstruct is concerned with nothing less than making the future and inventing new ways to “augment our collective human potential.”

Upon registering, your first task is to imagine yourself in 2019 - what you do, what your skills are and how you view the World. It’s an immediately compelling and unnerving experience to do this - the game compels you not to fictionalise a character. This is very much ‘about you’.

It’s a fascinating proposition , and one which is going to take a little time to understand fully. To get started, take yourself over to the how to play page, which gives details of how to play and the missions you will need to complete to progress through the game, which itself is played across wiki’s, forums and other social softwares.

It’s a unique project, made even more so by the limited life it has. Come November 17th, the game will close and prizes will be awarded for the best new Superstructures by a panel of luminiaries including Bruce Sterling, Jimmy Wales and Tim Kring. It’s not too late to be in with a chance of inventing the future.

Play Superstruct

Post this article to

  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • newsvine
  • Reddit

Post your comment

Please note: you will need to login or register before you can comment on the website

About the writer

Iain Simons

Iain Simons writes, talks and tweets about videogames and technology. His new book, Play Britannia, is to be published in 2009. He is the director of the GameCity festival at Nottingham Trent University.

Also by Iain Simons

Read More

Vote!

Will Baroness Ashton be an effective EU foreign minister?

Suggest a question

View comments

© New Statesman 1913 – 2009

Tracker