What is the “Being an Ally” Game Jam?
The “Being an Ally” Game Jam is a collaboration between the Anti-Defamation League (ADL)’s Center for Technology and Society, ADL Education and the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment (MADE) in Oakland, California.
It took place October 21st and 22nd, 2017, from Saturday evening to Sunday evening in locations across the U.S. Locations included:
- Austin, TX
- New York, NY
- Oakland, CA
Partner organizations promoting the event include Game Jolt, Playcrafters, Games for Change and the International Game Developers Association.
One chosen team received a $2,500 prize, an 8-week course in Unity or Unreal, membership in the International Game Developers Association, and was showcased at ADL’s Never is Now! summit in San Francisco on November 13, 2017. Additional prizes included a Nintendo Switch or SNES Mini.
Additional selected games created at the Game Jam are available for use by ADL’s network of 27 regional offices.
Winning Games
1st Place: Ali Tale
A high school student named Ali has friends who are the
target of bullying, when she meets a magical cat that gives
her a special power to help her understand people better.
(By 0x4d4147.)
2nd Place: A Day to Remember
Just days away from graduating school, a young robot boy
must find a way to stop the school's bullies from pulling the
biggest prank on the school. (By DecodeIt Studios.)
Honorable Mention: Woolf
In a small town of animal kids, a new student arrives. Most
kids already have some form of prejudice against them,
even though they don't know them. Your mission is to get to
know them and get others to like them as well. (By Mario Flores.)
Honorable Mention: Mean Bullies, Bean Bullies
In a magical world where little colorful bean creatures
wander around, sometimes those beans misbehave. Try to
stop the beans that are bullying and help the beans that
have been targeted. (By madmarcel.)
What is a Game Jam?
A Game Jam is a hackathon for building video games. A group of game developers gather in a room, brainstorm ideas based on a chosen theme, and rapidly prototype video game designs. Participants are asked to create a game from beginning to end in a set amount of time (in our case, 24 hours). The set window of time encourages creative thinking and results in innovative and experimental games.
Why “Being an Ally”?
In the minds of many, America has never been more divided than it is today. Now more than ever, people in communities that are targeted by bias, bullying, and hatred need people to speak out against these forces in our society and to take action. The games developed as part of this Game Jam will be a tool to help explore and illustrate what it means to be an ally — both for the people developing the games and for the people playing and spreading the word about them afterwards.
For more information about ADL Education’s anti-bias and bullying/cyberbullying prevention education programs and resources, follow ADL Education on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.