GetH2O
Serious games about peace building
GetH2O is a serious gamesproject about peace building. Fun games based on real life situations, with an educational purpose. At first a multiplayer board game was co-created by a team of young Kenyans with designers from Butterfly Works and Mamabits. Next, the game was translated into a single player mobile version. Mobile phones are incredibly popular in Kenya and Uganda especially among the youth.
GetH2O Challenge is a game about the challenges that slum dwellers face getting (clean) water. A fun game based on real life situation, with an educational purpose the game allows you to experience the race against the clock managing water, housing and pollution.
In the game you play the role of a ‘Change Maker’ who is working for the good of the community. Your aim in the game is to build houses and manage the water supply while keeping the pollution in check.
Educational grounding
We see Kenyan Youth as change agents and want to bring a message into their communication environment by emphasizing and showing solutions to daily life challenges and conflicts. By this positive modeling and creative thinking it is our aim to foster solution-finding mechanisms through reflection.
Peace building
Young people are particularly vulnerable to crime and violence, both as victims and perpetrators.
The games are part of a larger Peace building movement. The tactical board game exists alongside an e-learning environment, called Sambaza Peace. The board game is integrated into its curriculum.
What is it?
While playing the Geth2o game on your mobile phone you are exposed to the dynamics of conflict and you will have to choose solutions for destruction or peace. Vital resources are scarce and conflicts arise, representing the difficult choices one has to make in a real life situation.
Make sure your community karma stays as high as possible. What are your strategies to prosper? Build houses and manage water resources for you and your family, think about your community and face many challenges like corruption, crime or water shortage.
Do you love the game? Share your experiences with your friends and become part of the online Geth2o community. Or help us spread the game by translating it to another mobile platform or language.
Making of
GETH20 was conceived and designed through a series of co-creation workshops in Amsterdam and Nairobi.
Butterfly Works design team, NairoBits design team and students, alumni, youth workers, teachers, parents, police and government representatives.
The game concept and dynamics which were developed were first prototyped and tested as a board game and later translated into a mobile game.
Concept development group:
Co-creation process lead: Butterfly Works and NairoBits
Visual design and art direction: Butterfly Works
Game play design: based on board game play: Joris Dormans
Educational design: Butterfly Works, NairoBits
Testers & feedback group: NairoBits alumni
Promotion Team: NairoBits alumni
Board Game publishers in Netherlands: 999 Games, Netherlands
Board game production and sponsoring: LUDO FACT, Germany
Mobile game programming: The Saints, Netherlands
NairoBits is a digital design school for young people from the informal settlements of Nairobi, Kenya. www.nairobits.com
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