games. communities, networks, participation, communities

Typically inspirational stuff at David Wilcox's blog on his UsefulGames site - which seems to be an offshoot of his work on participation, technology and community networks.
Without playing games like this yourself it may be difficult to see how transformational they can be - how they break down barriers and enable everyone to share ideas and preferences.
Contrast this with more traditional techniques for brainstorming technology projects, or carrying out community consultation and you can see how it brings benefits beyond the immediate feedback. I was lucky enough to be amongst the first users of the games that David and Drew created back in 1999 [or before?] - and have used it myself in projects in the UK and in Hungary [in Hungarian].
It helps promote an informal setting that in turn helps create bonds and links which can be the foundation of networks, whether based on existing roles or helping to broker new ties. It's also a great way of overcoming technical barriers and avoiding the dominance of the technically literate - as seen in Bristol's Digital Challenge event.
Great stuff...