Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) yesterday said that major city-wide gaming events could boost visitation across three venues managed by Taipei Metro Recreation Co.
The Maokong Gondola in Wenshan District (文山), Taipei Children’s Amusement Park in Shilin District (士林) and Taipei Arena in Songshan District (松山) are geographically dispersed, which makes it challenging to maximize promotional efforts through conventional joint marketing, Chiang said.
To overcome the geographical hurdle, he has instructed officials to study the feasibility of inviting large mobile events to Taipei, he said, citing the Pokemon GO City Safari game as an example.
Photo: CNA
Urban adventure games such as Pokemon would encourage travel across districts, he said.
The gaming experience would increase the time people spend in the city, creating an economic ripple effect across transportation, catering, shopping districts and the hospitality sector, Chiang said.
Another game that might suit the proposal is Minecraft, he said, citing a player who spent a year designing the area around Taipei Railway Station in the building simulator.
Games are one of the most powerful tools to draw participation among young people, he said.
The three venues could collaborate with internationally renowned games to draw young people into urban design, he added.
They could create a “virtual Taipei,” in which participants build neighborhoods, design parks, optimize pedestrian environments and propose other changes, he added.
Chiang said that he had instructed Taipei Metro Recreation to coordinate and brainstorm concepts with the Taipei Department of Education, the Taipei Department for Youth and the Taipei Department of Urban Development.
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