Arab devs create 15 games about social issues in 48 hours

8:00 PM on 12.27.2011   |   Harry Monogenis

21 comments

Game Tako, an Arab gaming site, recently engaged in a special game development weekend known as "Game Zanga," which ran from December 16-17. Game Zanga was a competition which saw some 100 Arab game developers from 14 different countries across the Arab world take part. Twenty-seven of those were in a hall together in Amman where the actual event was taking place, while the others participated from their own locations.

The theme that each game being created needed to abide by was "social issues" and the 15 games that managed to be created and are now awaiting voting/judges decision (results will be known in early January 2012 with $15,000 in prizes on the line) are, well, very interesting. 

Entries included a game called "The Eastern Route" which is just a simple pick-up truck driving game where the player needs to avoid oncoming traffic and reach the destination before time runs out, "Prices Nightmare" where players need to avoid groceries to save money and even one called "Raasein Fil 7alal" which is a platform title where you play as a groom trying to avoid in-laws while getting to his wife.

All 15 games can be played via Game Tako's website. Here's a quick rundown of each game's description, who developed it and links to play. Hooray for stuff like that!

• Mathhar 7adhari NOT (Shumukh, Saudi Arabia): A game about graffiti in schools created with Unity. Prevent school kids from reaching the school wall and spraying it.
• Zabalooz (Ahmad Khalifa, Egypt): An action game about littering streets sporting an 8-bit retro-style created with Adobe Flash using the FlashPunk game engine.
• Exposure (Ahmad Saker, Egypt): An adventure game about our societies’ tendencies to stick to the familiar and reject the anything different with a unique art-style inspired by Film Noire. Created with Unity. 
• Salatee7 School (New Age Games, Saudi Arabia): A platformer game about school-related issues such as student beating by teachers, bullying, smoking among students and fires in schools, inspired by the recent school fire in Jeddah. Created with Unity.
• Cancer (ModyWorks, Egypt): An action game created with HTML5. Control an anti-body and fight cancer cells.
• Haamoor Al Araadi (Abdullah Konash, Saudi Arabia): A 3D game about the monopolization of land by powerful businessmen and the subsequent rise in costs of land and housing in Saudi Arabia. Created with Unity.
• Anabeeb Delivery (MotionTween, Jordan): A puzzle game about saving water created with Adobe Flash. Connect houses with a water supply before the timer runs out.
• Abdullah Hamed and The Stolen Bag (Faisal Kubaisi, Qatar): A comical platformer game featuring the GameTako founder Abdullah Hamed, created with HTML5 using GameMaker.
• Swake (Ibrahim Khaled, Jordan) A Snake-like game with a miswak and smoking theme that encourages players to stop smoking and use miswak instead, create with HTML5.
• Jame3 Jame3 3D (Team Wizards, Jordan): A 3D cart game telling the story of a little boy who struggles with poverty, from collecting empty cans and selling them all the way to a university degree and marriage.
• 3atel ilal 3amal (Team Monkey, Jordan): A platformer game about job hunting created with Flash using Flixel. Collect recommendations and send them to your prospective employers while avoiding wasta thugs (representing partiality and nepotism).
• The Eastern Route (Mohammad Salem, Palestine): A cargo delivery driving game created with Flash. Drive a pick-up and deliver the cargo to its destination before time runs out.
• Raasein Fil 7alal (Ali Mohammed Ali, Egypt): A plaftormer created with Adobe Flash. Control a groom, collect money, a ring and a house and reach your bride while avoiding your in-laws.
• Moving Recipes with Bakeeza Allazeeza (Kharabeesh Team, Jordan): A cooking game encouraging healthy food based on Kharabeesh’s Ramadan 2011 series “Moving Recipes with Bakeeza Allazeeza”
• Prices Nightmare (Abdurrahman Khallouf, Saudi Arabia): An arcade game about rising prices and consumerism created with Adobe Flash. Avoid contact with groceries to save your money as long as you can.