Sometimes there are games that we don't talk about enough and which should get a look in. The sorts of games that are important as much for what they represent and convey as they as are for the game itself. I've spoken before about how important the indie market is for keeping creativity alive and, ever so often, keeping the AAA needle turning. (Afterall, Battle Royales wouldn't exist as they do without PUBG.) In this instance, however, this game is even more significant than just being a indie title, as the Developer behind has a pretty incredible story that he has chosen to share through the medium of games. (There's a man after my own heart.)
You might have noticed during the VGA's there was an increased amount of attention payed for 'games with impact' to be shown off in the mid award vignettes. One such game was an impending Facebook title called 'Salaam' that was being put together by Lual Mayen; who rather succinctly describes himself as "a 24 year old refugee from South Sudan." During the brief segment on the VGAs there really wasn't a lot of time for Lual to tell us much about himself, which is relevant to what this game is about, but luckily he's shared all that other information on the web. In brief, Lual is the son of two refugee's who ended up unexpectedly becoming a refugee himself. As he grew, he found that he had an interest in computer design and ended up pursing it as much as he was able. His mother helped him save up for a laptop, he walked three miles everyday to visit an Internet Cafe, and it all payed off once he got the chance to launch his first game, Salaam, at the refugee camp.
Now, in the way that these things sometimes do, Lual and his story got noticed by a few influential figures in the gaming industry, as well as global news stations, which ultimately resulted in him being thrust into the spotlight. Lual then began to zip about from event to event giving talks about the potential of gaming and it's reach, not just to tell his story but to change the world. (The lad's an optimist then.) Facebook and the VGAs awarded him with their Global Gaming Citizen award to commend one who has built a powerful community and who seeks positive change around the world. (Truly inspirational stuff, if that's your bag.)
Of course, it was only a matter of time before Lual got a chance to properly develop his 'Salaam' for a mass audience to share in on, and so he launched a kickstarter in 2018 with the intention of putting this title on Facebook. (Can't say I'm a fan of his choice of platform, but I appreciate the attempt to be as accessible as possible.) Unfortunately that attempt didn't quite hit it's goal, but that hasn't stopped the project because at 2019's VGAs Lual announced that the game would be coming to Facebook later this year. (A little bit of a reschedule, but it's coming.) I hope this means he's found some outside funding to cover the rest of the project, heck maybe even hire on a team. (He even has a studio name with: 'Junub Games'.)
But what about the game itself? Well, pulling from experience, Salaam follows a caravan of refugees who are fleeing from a conflict area before finding themselves right in the middle of another. The player character must flee from a truck full of soldiers whilst collecting helpful resources like food and water to keep going whilst keeping their wits about them in order to avoid pitfalls and- Lions?! (How can one person have such crappy luck?) So yes, Salaam is essentially a running game in the vein of the 'Temple Escape' franchise and the 'Sonic Dash' games (And hundreds of others that I cannot remember right now.) with a dash of Africa thrown in and a much more serious context to it all. So yeah, this game might not be the most out-there thing in the world, but maybe that's not what exactly matters today.
The idea behind redesigning and bringing this game to a national scale is for Junub games to put players directly in the shoes of a refugee, and just like with "This War of Mine" that can be an incredibly provocative place to be. That means the team will work to represent hazards like 'hunger, dehydration, malnourishment and sickness', demonstrating the daily struggles of some of the less fortunate in the world. Additionally, it appears that this game will feature microtransactions, (just like every runner game, as it so happens) only these will go directly to charities who feed and supply refugees all over the world. (That's one way to make someone feel less guilty about tossing a few coins at the screen.)
I've mentioned before about the importance of using a platform as large as the VGAs to support the small creators, but I'll admit even I was surprised to see it used as a place to discuss important issues. For a game like Salaam to get featured there speaks volumes about the versatility of games and gaming culture, and for Geoff to recognize that and use his resources to amplify that note is truly commendable. It's one of the reasons why I feel that the VGAs are more important to gaming than a lot of more famous 'award shows', like the Oscars, are for their respective medium. The Oscars have never used their stage to speak about the injustices of the world and, in fact, even actively shunned such discourse at the 1973 Oscars wherein Marlon Brando turned down his reward in order to boycott and protest Hollywood's betrayal of Native Americans. The only time that real issues are ever bought up in relation to the Oscars is when some actor wants to get up on their pedestal about the devastation of climate change before flying their private jet halfway around the world the following month. (Yeah, I still remember when Leonardo DiCaprio did that.)
But this blog started off as something positive, so I'll quickly pivot back to that before I end up turning into Josef Fares. (Although I do endorse his message.) 'Salaam' is a glowing example of the potential of gaming and the gaming community to blur the lines between reality and the gameworld in the best possible way. Whenever any of those talking heads on the news spit out any nonsense about "games that teach kids how to kill", (Thanks for that one, Joe Biden) it's good to remember the educational and empathetic value of titles like 'Salaam'. It may not be my personal preference of game, but I support it none-the-less. Maybe with the right backing, we may see more games in this vein coming in the future. (and maybe they'll be a bit more fun to actually play, like "This War of Mine".)
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