Tuesday, February 09, 2010
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Play Video Games & Grow! Press Play to Grow! is an initiative founded by Moses Silbiger, M.A. based on a multi-disciplinary academic research + INDENTRO game design framework intended to catalyze awareness, transformation and integrated development in multiple intelligences through video game play.

Our mission is to design novel video games aimed to skillfully leverage and balance three synergetic variables -
1. Entertainment - fun & play
2. Popularity - market value
3. Personal Growth - 'trojan horses' Learn more...
Play Video Games & Grow! Press Play to Grow! is an initiative founded by Moses Silbiger, M.A. based on a multi-disciplinary academic research + INDENTRO game design framework intended to catalyze awareness, transformation and integrated development in multiple intelligences through video game play.

Our mission is to design novel video games aimed to skillfully leverage and balance three synergetic variables -
1. Entertainment - fun & play
2. Popularity - market value
3. Personal Growth - 'trojan horses' Learn more...
Play Video Games & Grow! Press Play to Grow! is an initiative founded by Moses Silbiger, M.A. based on a multi-disciplinary academic research + INDENTRO game design framework intended to catalyze awareness, transformation and integrated development in multiple intelligences through video game play.

Our mission is to design novel video games aimed to skillfully leverage and balance three synergetic variables -
1. Entertainment - fun & play
2. Popularity - market value
3. Personal Growth - 'trojan horses' Learn more...

Trojan Horse Approach

Subtle and underlying developmental practices intentionally aimed to improve various lines of intelligence (cross-training) + other core aspects of personal growth.

Like the ancient Greeks used surreptitious strategies to win their war, video games can intentionally support a proactive "inner battle" against our deeply ingrained resistances to grow and change. Designers can leverage their games to catalyze inner transformation Read more...

Testimonials Academic Research

"Moses Silbiger has been doing a breakthrough exploration on the untapped territory of designing integral-developmental video games as ‘Trojan horses’ for catalyzing human development..."

- Ken Wilber
Contemporay philosopher & author of 25+ books
Founder of the Integral Institute

"Moses Silbiger is talented in many respects. I've worked closely with him in an integral research context, where he demonstrated initiative, thoroughness, creativity, and vision..." 

- Sean Esbjörn-Hargens, Ph.D.
JFK University professor, consultant & author
Founder of the Integral Research Center

INDENTRO Framework



The Integral-Developmental Trojan Horse INDENTRO video game design framework provides a deeper, broader and integrative vision with practical tools for leveraging various human developmental practices into video game play.

Applying this model as a developmental framework can support game designers to create more focused, skillful and effective integral-developmental video games - as well as to support trainers, teachers, guides and gamers to fulfill their specific developmental goals and aspirations. Read more...

Projects



As the founder of the press play to grow! initiative, Moses Silbiger, M.A. has been involved in various related projects with a few partners and supporters, such as writing a book about integral-developmental game design, providing INDENTRO video game consulting services to individuals & organizations, and co-designing a few video game concepts based on his integral-developmental research and INDENTRO framework.

Learn More

 

Sustainability & Video Games



The press play to grow! initiative has been recently involved in a couple of emerging projects based on the creation of conceptual designs of specific video games based on the INDENTRO framework.

Among these ventures, Moses Silbiger has been leading an international sustainability project in partnership with 3 game designers:
Rusel DeMaria
Game author, designer and consultant
Richard Cabelka
Game designer, Hong Kong Polytechnic University
Robin Potanin
Game designer, University of Adelaide, Australia

The purpose of this project is to create the conceptual design of a multi-platform video game system (MMO, ARG, iPhone, Online Social Networks) based on concepts and applications of Integral Sustainability, Ecology and Psychology. This proposal has been supported by the State of the World Forum, Integral Life and the Integral Institute.



INDENTRO Sustainability Video Game



 CODE S.U.S. - Sustain . Unite . Survive

A r-evolutionary and self-revealing hero’s journey to transform an increasingly critical human and planetary condition towards a more sustainable, united and pro-survival future for humanity through the 21st century and beyond...



Board of game advisors composed by renowned game designers: 
Tracy Fullerton, Ph.D.
USC professor & author, director of Electronic Arts Game Innovation Lab
Ian Bogost, Ph.D.
Georgia Institute of Technology professor & author
Drew Davidson, Ph.D.
Director of ETC, Carnegie Mellon University
Jesse Schell, Ph.D
Author & professor ETC, Carnegie Mellon University

Board of integral sustainability advisors composed by renowned integral thinkers and experts:
Ken Wilber
Philosopher, pundit & author
Sean Esbjorn-Hargens, Ph.D.
JFK University professor, consultant & author
Beena Sharma
Project manager & consultant Cook-Greuter Associates
Robb Smith
CEO Integral Life & entrepreneur
Paul Ray, Ph.D.
Anthropologist, sociologist & author (Cultural Creatives)
Emilia Queiroga de Barros
VP of the State of the World Forum

Learn More

Presentations - Academic Research



Since 2008, Moses Silbiger has presented his academic research based on the Integral Methodological Pluralism (IMP) in various conferences, articles, interviews and lectures.

 

Lectures & Consulting Services

If you are interested in knowing more details about lectures, presentations and consulting services related to integral and developmental applications to video game design based on the INDENTRO framework, please contact Moses Silbiger.

Contact

 

Conferences & Awards

Conferences
Integral Theory Conference 2008*
*Award: Honorable Mention in Research Paper
Games+Learning+Society 2008
Meaningful Play 2008

Learn More

 

Interviews & Discussions

Interviews
Ken Wilber & Moses Silbiger, AQAL journal, Feb. 2008
Ken Wilber & Moses Silbiger, Integral Life & Integral Naked, Aug. 2008
Ken Wilber & Moses SIlbiger, JITP journal, Nov. 2009
Tom Huston & Moses Silbiger, EnlightenNext Magazine, Oct. 2009 (in revision, to be published in 2010)

Discussions with integral experts
David Zeitler, M.A., John F. Kennedy professor & gamer
Gail Hochachka, Ph.D., John F. Kennedy professor
Alden Gannon, ex-Microsoft, CTO Aliveware & gamer
Corey DeVos, Integral Life writer & gamer
Robb Smith, CEO Integral Life, entrepreneur & gamer

Discussions with video game experts
Daniel Erickson, lead writer at Bioware, Austin, TX
Tracy Fullerton, USC professor, director EA Experimental Lab
Rusel DeMaria, game author, designer & consultant
Gordon Walton, co-studio director, Bioware, Austin, TX
John Romero, game designer, creator of game Doom
Ian Bogost, game designer and GIT professor

Learn More

 

Articles & Papers

Articles
Journal of Integral Theory & Practice - JITP
(academic article in revision to be published in 2010)
Ken Wilber.com Blog, July 2008
Integral Life & Integral Naked, August 2008
Meaningful Play Conference 2008 website, Oct. 2008
John F. Kennedy University Newsletter, July 2008

Learn More

 

Blog + News

What's new?
Check our recent Blog + News entries!

Blog + News

Poll: Show your interest!

How often would you play video games that could help you to improve BODY, MIND, HEART & SPIRIT, while having the same (or even more) FUN than some of the best-selling video games available in the market?

Results

Find it COOL?



Join our initiative!

We are looking for investors, supporters and partners interested in creating specific INDENTRO video games for different market niches.

Are you related to one of the profiles below?

  • Video game studio
  • Investor, sponsor or donor
  • Video game agent
  • Video game "networker"
  • Game designer
  • Game developer
  • Game artist
  • Game programmer
  • Academic researcher and/or experts in:
    - Video games & education
    - Video games & psychology
  • Expert in technologies related to video game interfaces for:
    - Wellness
    - Fitness 
    - Mindfulness 
    - Biofeedback
    - Nintendo Wii 
    - Microsoft's Project Natal
  • Hardcore gamer
  • Video game fan
  • Just LOVE to support the creation and design of INDENTRO video games!

Learn more how to join us!

Developmental Games



Video Games as "Conveyor Belts" of Human Development

"Based on this vision, video games could also have a potentially strategic role to facilitate a mass development of a broad range of people through a virtual conveyor belt of growth..." (Silbiger, 2010, p. 14, Journal of Integral Theory and Practice - JITP)
Learn More

  • Interactive Modules
DRAG and DROP the interfaces marked in red illustrated in the image at the left to sort different modules (boxes) in this web page - horizontally or vertically - at your own choice.

Funding: Invest INDENTRO!

Attention UPA!
Untapped Potentials Ahead!

“From all the entertainment media existent today [music, TV, movies, web, books, cartoons, theater], the video game industry is the fastest growing and one of the most popular, pervasive and profitable segments in the already ‘trillion-dollar-a-year’ entertainment industry” (Bryant & Vorderer, 2006).

"Today, video games have already surpassed the growth of both music and movie industries altogether (PricewaterhouseCoopers, 2007; Discovery Channel, 2007)."
(Silbiger, 2010, Journal of Integral Theory and Practice - JITP)

According to Marketdata Enterprises, a group that tracks major cultural trends, the self-improvement business is expected to hit $12 billion in the U.S. by 2008. 

Paul Zane Pilzer - world-renowned economist, entrepreneur and writer - comments that the "wellness revolution" is gradually becoming the "next trillion dollar industry".

According to Ethical Markets Media (USA and Brazil), private investment in companies have been growing the green economy globally with over $1.248 trillion in total investments related to sustainable development since 2007.
See more stats...

Contact us for + info

Mission Statement

Mission Statement


Press Play to Grow! explores the emergent potentials of video games and virtual reality simulators through novel applications intentionally designed to catalyze personal growth, transformation and integration.

By tapping into the markets of Self-improvement, Self-Help, Wellness and Sustainability (Green, Eco markets), Press Play to Grow! envisions a natural expansion and deepening of video games' potential applications and demographics, creating new market niches and untapped demands by appealing to different ages, genres, cultures, organizations, institutions and industries.

This project intends to improve the basic entertainment, popular and economical drives of successful video game design by intentionally integrating an underlying layer of scientifically based developmental assessments and practices.

These underlying developmental tools are intended to provide meaningful insights and embodied game play experiences skilfully adapted to players's personal profiles and realities. They are envisioned to be strategically embedded in the game design structure, storylines and mechanics in subtle and underlying ways by means of a "Trojan Horse Approach" - and hence not being patronizing, literal or overtly apparent throughout the game play.

The Press Play to Grow! initiative has been developed by Moses Silbiger, M.A. in conjunction with like-minded researchers, game designers, critics, and enthusiasts for gaming and human development. Learn more...