As part of a larger corporate partnership with the U.S. government, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment is launching a free multi-player PC game in Kenya intended to change HIV risk perception, attitude and behavior. Called "Pamoja Mtaani" ("Together in the Hood"), it's launching in youth centers in Nairobi, Kenya.
Amazing! It's in partnership with HIV Free Generation (beware that flashtastic site full of burdensome language, however).
Variety has the news. I'd love to know more, like why just Kenya and how WB got involved in the first place.
The game itself sounds ... a bit odd, as the site's not that great at describing the gameplay: the women are "chicks", the men are "guys", and the objectives are either a very useful hand of cards, or a terrible commentary on sexual stereotypes - it's not clear which from the copy.
If the five objectives (from increasing HIV testing through to all-out abstinence) are all applied to all five game characters, then there's a proper challenge afoot. If the five objectives are in fact personal objectives of each character, then we're seeing one of the two ladies with the Abstinence millstone, and the onus of Good Condom Use on only one of the lads. Not a good message at all.
I'm getting obsessively detail-oriented on these educational nuances.
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