Games to Support Disruptive Technology Adoption: The MUST Game Use Case

The Maritime Unmanned Systems Trust (MUST) Game serves as a specialized analytical wargame designed to evaluate human perspectives on the integration of unmanned maritime systems into naval operations. By isolating core trust variables from operational constraints such as cost and logistics, the initiative aims to generate high-quality expert data to inform the development of future decision-support algorithms. The primary thesis posits that structured, iterative gaming environments provide a reliable framework for capturing complex human decision-making processes, thereby facilitating the adoption of disruptive technologies within military and scientific domains.

The scope of this research encompasses multi-national military and scientific experts engaged in both manual and distributed tabletop exercises. These participants evaluated the game’s modular design—which utilizes knowledge cards, maps, and asset data—as highly realistic and operationally relevant. By intentionally excluding information uncertainty, the game focuses exclusively on the psychological and tactical factors that influence trust in autonomous systems. This approach creates a safe-to-fail environment that encourages creative, outside-the-box thinking while fostering constructive collaboration among international stakeholders.

Findings indicate that the MUST Game is an effective tool for knowledge acquisition, successfully bridging the gap between theoretical human-robot interaction research and practical operational application. The study concludes that the game’s scalable framework is not limited to maritime contexts but can be adapted to explore decision-making across various disruptive technology sectors. Ultimately, the project demonstrates that serious gaming is a robust methodology for eliciting expert assessments, providing a viable path for refining the integration of autonomous assets into complex, high-stakes operational environments.