NPR’s Gene Demby reveals an inspiring collaboration between an Alaskan tribal non-profit and a video developer in his interview with Amy Fredeen of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council and Sean Vesce of E-Line Media. In an effort to find a sustainable funding source for its work, the Council teamed up with a new father (Vesce) who wanted to work on projects with a lasting impact. They met up with a native storyteller, Ishmael Hope, and other storytellers and artists and decided to base the game on the Native Alaskan meta-story Kunuuksaayuka about dealing with a blizzard that won’t end.
While I’ve never played a video game or even seen one, the visuals in the game Never Alone are beautiful and the message compelling. Themes include climate change, man’s relationship with nature, and what it takes to survive against the odds. The Cook Inlet Tribal Council website said “The drive for sustainability and a commitment to the empowerment of Alaska Native youth are at the core of CITC’s investment in video game development.”
Never Alone, a new video game by E-Line Media, has been generating a lot of buzz in recent months. Its developers teamed up with the Cook Inlet Tribal Council, a nonprofit that works with Native Alaskans, creating Never Alone as a way to help transmit traditional tribal stories to younger indigenous kids.
So far, reviews for the game have been strong. I spoke to Amy Fredeen of the Cook Inlet Tribal Council and Sean Vesce of E-Line Media about this unlikely collaboration, about representation in games, and whether video games can have a larger purpose and still be fun to play. Our conversation has been edited for clarity and length.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/codes...uzzles-and-power-ups
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