Promoting psychological well-being, social connection, and personal growth among young people in difficulty: this is the challenge of Wanderer’s Quest, an innovative project that has just launched its crowdfunding campaign as part of BiUniCrowd, the University of Milano-Bicocca's platform for research-based social innovation.
In Italy, more than one in six people under 30 is a NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training), often facing loneliness, low self-esteem, and a sense of disorientation. Wanderer’s Quest was created to offer these young people a path to empowerment through a live, tabletop role-playing game experience that encourages collaboration, imagination, and the development of soft skills.
“Board games are much more than a way to pass the time and have fun. With this project, we want to highlight their transformative power as psychological and relational tools,” explains team leader Vittorio Guerrieri, a psychology student with a passion for quantitative psychology and board games, who first conceived Wanderer’s Quest. “The sessions are designed to help participants break out of isolation, improve communication, practise problem-solving, and rebuild self-confidence in a safe, engaging environment.”
At the heart of the experience is WarFables, a narrative strategy game where each participant builds a character and faces collective missions in a fantasy world. These imagined adventures become a symbolic way to tackle real-life challenges and reimagine one’s own role and potential.
The funds raised through the crowdfunding campaign, hosted on Ideaginger.it – the most successful crowdfunding platform in Italy – will support:
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the development of a game-based intervention for NEET youth,
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further research on the motivational impact of gameplay,
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validation of the intervention with concrete data,
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production of physical copies of the game for local associations,
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and publication and sharing of the results so the initiative can be replicated and scaled.
Every donation counts – and counts double: if the €5,000 goal is reached, Fondazione Cariplo, which supports the project, will match the total amount donated, significantly boosting the project’s impact.
The project is scientifically supervised by Professor Guyonne Rogier (International Medical University in Rome), Professor Luca Pancani (Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca), and researcher Marcello Passarelli (CNR). The artistic direction is led by Camilla Fadda, concept artist in the gaming world, with organisation and communication by Camilla Merola. Elisa Scialabba provides pedagogical support, while Mattia Scarsi (videomaker), and game designers Simone Glogowschek and Marco Monteverde help make the experience engaging and accessible. Raluca Fulgu, student and early-career researcher at Milano-Bicocca, supports data analysis and scientific publication.
There are numerous rewards for those who support the project – from digital copies of the game to inclusion in the final game edition.
Images of the Wanderer’s Quest team are available at this link.