News
April 16, 2026
Games for Change and Tencent call for more informed conversation on children and video games in Good Game Club podcast.
Games for Change and Tencent have joined forces to back Raising Good Gamers, a global initiative designed to help parents and caregivers better understand video games and support healthier play. In a new episode of the Good Game Club podcast, Susanna Pollack, President of Games for Change and Danny Marti, Head of Public Affairs at Tencent explore how the public conversation around games, children and wellbeing can move beyond fear and towards understanding.
In the episode, Pollack says that video games have become one of the most influential environments for young people today, and yet the public debate often lags behind the reality of how children engage with play. She argues that healthy gameplay should be supported not only by developers, but also by parents, educators, policymakers and wider communities, with the shared goal of helping young people have more positive and balanced experiences.
Marti says video games are still widely misunderstood because of how different they are from other forms of entertainment. As a deeply interactive medium, he explains, games encourage participation, problem‑solving and persistence in ways that are not always visible from the outside. While parents, policymakers and communities recognise the creativity and social connection video games enable, he says they also want clearer understanding of what children experience in play and how to engage constructively. That is why collecting and sharing evidence — alongside parental participation and observation - is essential to helping families and decision‑makers navigate play with greater confidence.
Together, Pollock and Marti make the case for a more informed approach to discussions around safe and healthy gameplay, one that replaces assumptions and stereotypes with insight and supports families with practical guidance rather than soundbites.
Building on this focus of understanding and evidence, the initiative also includes the development of a whitepaper, a research-backed publication authored by Dr Rachel Kowert, Research Director, Games for Change. The paper will provide parents, educators, policymakers and industry stakeholders with a clearer framework for understanding video games in young people's lives and how to engage families in the conversation. The white paper will be publicly launched at the Games for Change Festival in New York in July 2026.
The podcast episode is released on April 16th, following the formal partnership announcement at the inaugural Games for Change London Summit, part of London Games Festival 2026. The partnership with Tencent forms part of Games for Change’s wider international expansion, which brings its Summit to London for the first time as part of London Games Festival 2026.
Good Game Club explores the untapped power of video games, and the positive impact digital play can have on people and the planet. Hosted by Jude Ower MBE and Mathias Gredal Nørvig CEO SYBO, the show brings together voices from across games, culture, business and society to examine how video games shape modern life. It is supported by a strategic partnership with Tencent.
For more information, please contact comms@goodgame.club.
