Sustainability in the Built Environment Reflected in Serious Games: A Systematic Narrative Literature Review

The increasing complexity of the built environment—encompassing three-dimensional spatial dynamics, environmental footprints, and socio-cultural dimensions—necessitates innovative educational tools. Serious games have emerged as immersive platforms bridging theoretical knowledge and practical application in this domain. This narrative literature review examines the extent to which serious games effectively integrate and reflect sustainability principles within the context of the built environment, as well as their strategies for engaging learners. A comprehensive search was conducted across multiple databases using keywords such as “serious games,” “built environment,” and “sustainability.” The review identifies that while many games address tangible challenges like retrofitting simulations and resource management, their incorporation of sustainability concepts is often superficial. Critical aspects such as inclusivity, stakeholder engagement, and alignment with SDGs are frequently underrepresented. Furthermore, a lack of a common language among stakeholders and the tendency to focus on isolated aspects of sustainability, rather than adopting a holistic approach, were noted. Despite these limitations, the engaging nature of these games that are based on real scenarios offers potential for impactful learning experiences. However, challenges persist, including technical constraints, pedagogical limitations, and deeper epistemological and ethical tensions in game design. The findings underscore the need for a more integrated and comprehensive approach to embedding sustainability in serious games, along with more effective engagement strategies to ensure they function as impactful tools for education and learning in the built environment domain.