Significant cuts to public funding implemented by the Trump administration had repercussions across numerous sectors of American life, including the field of video games.
These broad budget reductions specifically impacted initiatives such as game preservation programs, virtual reality development projects, and even research exploring the connection between public health and gaming. Examples included efforts by the University of Washington`s Game Research Group, which aimed to enhance the accessibility of culturally significant video games in heritage institutions for educational purposes, and a program supporting a grant at Arizona State University where Latinx students developed games focused on climate change.
Some projects saw their funding withdrawn just as they were nearing completion. For instance, Associate Professor Rabindra Ratan at Michigan State was leading a project, supported by a $1.6 million grant from the National Science Foundation, designed to address issues like “Zoom fatigue” and reduce gender and race inequities in virtual meetings within the games industry. However, the Trump administration rescinded the grant earlier in the year, preventing Ratan and his team from accessing the final $200,000 required to complete their work.
Although Ratan`s team successfully built a virtual meeting space intended as an effective alternative to platforms like Zoom, it remains unfinished due to the abrupt funding cut. The platform is still accessible to the public, and Ratan plans to publish more findings from the incomplete project, but its full development is stalled for the foreseeable future.
Other multi-media initiatives, such as the virtual reality game “Paccha,” were also affected. This game allows players to explore the Peruvian Andes from the perspective of a student archaeologist. The loss of funding halted planned collaborations with the San Antonio Museum of Art and residents and workers in the village of Hualcayan, the game`s setting. The developers are now actively seeking alternative funding sources.
Ratan highlighted that the video game industry plays a crucial role in driving technological development, exploration, and experimentation. Consequently, he argued that the funding cuts could have effects that extend well beyond the gaming sector itself.
He further elaborated, stating, “By limiting research in this industry, it is limiting science as a whole.” Ratan added that a more direct negative consequence is hindering progress within the games industry, particularly because advancements made in gaming frequently lead to innovations applicable in other industries.