What is this project?
Unbully is a doctoral research project that investigates online hate speech among children and young people, exploring the potential of fantasy video games as tools for awareness and indirect social intervention. The research recognizes the video game as an artistic, cultural, and social medium capable of fostering critical reflection and empathy.
How does the game address these themes?
Rather than relying on explicit or moralizing messages, Unbully uses symbolic narratives, fictional characters, and an imaginary world to invite players to confront situations of intolerance and exclusion. The goal is to promote values of respect, diversity, and social coexistence in an implicit and experiential way, through play, not lectures.
Research Approach
The project combines practice-based artistic research, centered on the creative and technical processes of game development, with participatory action research. Qualitative methods include content analysis, participant observation, and the collection of player testimonies. The theoretical framework draws on digital artistic practices, digital artivism, and video game culture.
Play & Participate
The game is freely available online and can be experienced both in informal contexts and in accompanied settings such as schools or workshops. After playing, participants are invited to share their thoughts through a short online form, contributing directly to the research.
Unbully is a doctoral research project by Gabriel Evangelista (Polytechnic of Leiria) at the University of Algarve, supervised by Bruno Mendes da Silva (UAlg / CIAC).