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Anywhere, Anytime AIDS Awareness

by Team Digit / Sep 01, 2006 13:20:35 IST / Tags: energy, GE, webkit, chrome

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Society has the general mindset that games are primarily a leisure activity-just for fun, so to speak. But that's been changing, and still is. There are those for whom gaming is more of a religion than leisure: the key-mashers with their games like Doom and all. And now we have games being developed for specific purposes, such as for education, skill development, stress reduction, memory improvement, therapy, and more. And they're not just PC-based either, they're available on multiple platforms-consoles, handhelds and mobile phones as well.

There is also development of games for the treatment of specific ailments. Recently, a boy called Ethan Myers-whom we've spoken of earlier in Digit, April 2006-recovered by playing games, after he was declared brain-dead by doctors. A computer game was recently tested for the cure of stress-related illness by doctors at the Royal Free Hospital in London.

The segment gaining most in popularity is mobile games, because these work on devices that most people own, and is something people can play anywhere-the middle of the street, in a train, at work, at home, in a coffee shop. Mobile gaming is spreading like never before in India, and it's no wonder that mobile gaming companies are sprouting faster than tea-stalls outside colleges. And it's not like they're making bad games-some very creative and good-looking 3D games are being created now.

The Mobile Gaming Championship organised by Nokia in the recent past attracted more than 26,000 people across the country, the cash prize being Rs 10 lakh. With more than 105 million people using mobile phones as of now, the mobile gaming market is set to explode: the number of mobile phone subscribers is expected to exceed 350 million by 2010. Mobile content developers are releasing games with an "international" look and feel.

Social Causes
"I had heard lot about HIV/AIDS on TV. The idea was vague. Now after playing this game, I have become aware about its infection, its prevention and its transmission. I play this game whenever I am free," says Shiv, a household helper with a mobile connection.

-The Hindustan Times
On December 1, 2005, which was National AIDS Prevention Day, New Delhi-based ZMQ Systems unveiled four mobile games. Using edutainment as their platform, ZMQ Software Systems plans on educating people about HIV/AIDS through these games-Safety Cricket, Ribbon Chase, Messenger, and Quiz with Babu.

The games can be downloaded for free from Reliance. "We are privileged to be pioneers in the field of social marketing using mobile devices. Today, mobile devices are the most prevalent tools in the hands of the common man, whether it's children or adults, rural or urban populations; even the high-risk population like migrant population and sex workers. It is our social responsibility to spread HIV/AIDS awareness using the latest technologies", said Subhi Quraishi, CEO of ZMQ Software Systems.

It's common knowledge that one of the major reasons for the steep increase of HIV-positive people in the country is a lack of knowledge about AIDS. And the problem is not just prevention; it's also the hardships that people already infected with HIV are facing. ZMQ Software Systems has three basic reasons for pioneering this new form of AIDS awareness: to prevent transmissions and infections from taking place, to improve the quality of life for HIV-positive people, and to reduce stigma and discrimination.

The games have been downloaded by more than 3 million people already, and that's just the figures for downloads between December 1, 2005 and May 31 of this year! The firm has been invited by many countries to develop more such games for social awareness about HIV/AIDS.

The development started with a team of seven people, and the games were developed on the Java platform with Brew technology (in partnership with Qualcomm). Nearly 75 to 80 per cent of cell phones available in India can run these games.

The Games
Developed using the innovative IEC (Information-Education-Communication) methodology, the games we mentioned were designed keeping in mind the tastes and habits of Indians-like cricket, game shows (KBC), etc. Information, education and communication (IEC) combines strategies, approaches and methods that enable individuals, families, groups, organisations and communities to play active roles in achieving, protecting and sustaining their own health. Let's take a look at the games.

Safety Cricket
Safety Cricket is a role-playing game based on cricket, which is a religion, not a sport, in India! There's probably no better way to convey awareness messages than with cricket. Based on a village cricket match between Demons XI and Safety XI, Safety XI has to chase runs in 10 overs and 300 seconds, with 10 players to spare. Balls appear in form of safety symbols such as condoms, a faithful partner, HIV information, and the red AIDS ribbon.

Ribbon Chase
Ribbon Chase is an arcade game where you are the red ribbon while the HIV virus is in hot pursuit. Different cities in the world are asking for information on HIV/AIDS, and you need to deliver by visiting the cities, while the HIV virus tries its best to stop you from doing so.

The Messenger
This is an adventure game for casual users who enjoy playing exciting but easy-to-manoeuvre games. A dove-the traditional symbol of peace and love-is used as a messenger of HIV/AIDS awareness. The dove flies from village to village, collects condoms and red ribbons, and distributes them to the villagers based on their needs.

Quiz with Babu
A quiz-based game, Quiz with Babu requires you to use intuition and reasoning. Babu, a village boy, makes a resolution to spread HIV/ AIDS awareness in his village. In the game, you play a quiz to test your knowledge of HIV/AIDS from a huge database of questions. No two crores at the end; just the satisfaction of being well-informed about AIDS.

Games For Healing
A game for physical therapy is under development by a research team of the University of Southern California. It will employ items such as special goggles, high-tech mitts, pinching devices and a pencil-like stylus, which will be used to simulate a 3D experience.

Games For Many Causes
Educational game makers have come out with games to make people aware of real-world issues. Games like Darfur is dying, Peace maker and Food Force are the most popular examples. They have been downloaded more than 2 million times. Games are being developed in Korea to promote multicultural awareness amongst Asian children who have migrated to other continents.

Games Beyond Entertainment
The 21st century has become serious about gaming with a purpose beyond entertainment. Game developers, artists, designers, individuals and organisations are joining hands to address real-world issues.

Education and learning-based games: Many game titles focus on education and learning. Such games aim at actually developing the cognitive abilities of those playing the game. Games like MeChem, Environmental Detective, Making History, and others have been exclusively developed for educational purposes.

Public policy games: Some games educate the masses on public policies and help them understand their roles as citizens of society. Sim City is a very popular example.

Business Games: Formulating business polices, strategies, budgeting, management issues, team work, and so on can be dealt with virtually with the help of games that simulate workplace scenarios and assign tasks.

Military Games: Wartime situations, strategies to be followed, rescue operations, war time crises, and such, can be "experienced" by playing games that enable war scenarios. America Army Operations is one such game, which gives one an idea about how a soldier is trained.

Political Games: Games on political events and procedures such as elections give a picture about issues such as why voting is important, how the government functions, how social issues are addressed, and so forth.

"Games are helping solve problems in areas as diverse as education, healthcare, legal issues, and more"

Indiagames, an Indian mobile content publisher, has released games like Jai Hanuman, Ganesh Stuti, and Shree Ganesh for the religious consumer.

Games are helping solve problems in areas as diverse as education, healthcare, legal issues, national defence, analytics, corporate management and more. The ideas, skills, technologies, techniques, and the innovative method of play-and-learn is successfully being employed by game developers. Kudos to those who are making a difference!

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