A Longitudinal Study of Video Games' Influence on Climate Change Concerns, Climate Refugee Awareness, and Environmental Behaviour Activism.

This article examines the educational impact of *The Climate Trail*, a climate change-themed serious video game, on undergraduate students' knowledge retention, climate change concerns, and environmental activism, with a focus on underexplored topics such as climate-induced migration and global climate change trends. Using a one-group quasi-experimental design with 39 sustainability-related course students assessed at baseline, immediately post-play, and two weeks later, the study found that the game significantly increased and sustained knowledge about climate refugees and climate change trends, while climate concerns grew gradually over time. However, no significant changes were observed in environmental activism behaviors, illustrating the persistent "value-action gap" where increased awareness does not necessarily lead to action. Enjoyment of gameplay correlated positively with self-perceived learning and climate concerns but showed a complex relationship with knowledge retention. These findings suggest that immersive, narrative-driven serious games can effectively enhance climate education and engagement, though further research is needed to translate awareness into sustained pro-environmental behaviors.