THE GREEN GAME JAM 2023 HAS ENDED.
The Green Game Jam is an annual event organized by the Playing for the Planet Alliance where gaming studios are challenged to implement 'green activations' into their games. This year's wildlife edition has raised over $700,000.
The Green Game Jam 2024 will continue to accelerate the number of video games that take action for the environment. Drop us a note at info@playing4theplanet.org in case your studio would like to join next year. We aim to kick off the 2024 edition in January 2024.
Are you ready to empower your players to change their world through the games they know and love?
THEME & GOAL
This year, gaming studios and their players are being taken on an adventure to conserve the wonderful wildlife found in three unique ecosystems. Animals are part of our world, and we are part of theirs. Keeping wildlife and biodiversity in balance is critical for the health of our planet. Yet, 69% of global wildlife has been lost since 1970, and protecting their ecosystems is key in the flight against climate change.
For this reason, we are all teaming up to protect three wild ecosystems and help safeguard the lives of harlequin toads in the Amazon, snow leopards in the Himalayas, and manta rays in the Western Indian Ocean for a year*. Together, we can make a difference!
Himalayas
The Himalayas are the largest permanent ice reserves outside the polar regions and provide more than 1.9 billion people with fresh water. Snow leopards are facing several threats including poaching, mining and development. They require extremely large habitats which are often cut into smaller pieces as roads are being built around different development projects.
Amazon
The Amazon rainforest is home to millions of wild species, over one million indigenous peoples and half of the world’s tropical rainforests. It produces 20% of the world oxygen and has a critical role in cooling the planet. Human activity in the form of logging, mining and resource extraction threatens this critical ecosystem resulting in habitat loss of the harlequin toad and many other species.
Western Indian Ocean
The Western Indian Ocean which comprises the African coastal states such as Kenya, Mozambique and South Africa, is one of the least ecologically disturbed regions in the world. It is a breeding ground for some of the most iconic species in our oceans. But this ecosystem is currently threatened by human activities such as unsustainable fishing practises and extraction of fossil fuels.
In the fight against climate change there is no single citizen, business, non-profit, or government who can tackle this agenda alone. Therefore, the Green Game Jam also needs help from several strong partners who have played a crucial role in getting this year's jam off the ground.
A big thank you to Internet of Elephants for shaping this year's theme, to Milkywire for their creative support to communicate our work to millions players around the world, and to Google for showing that not only gaming studios are trying to make a difference, but also other players in the industry are on board to help.
Milkywire is this year's impact partner. Their tech platform enables companies and private donors to support trusted environmental organizations through digital tools and a transparent feedback model. They help fund a wide spectrum of initiatives, from species preservation to cutting-edge carbon removal. They are the bridge between the gaming industry and the people on the ground making sure that these ecosystems are protected. You can find more information about how the jam is progressing towards its goal here.
Alliance member Internet of Elephants (IoE) is this year's thematic partner. They have helped to share the theme and goals of this Jam. IoE is a one-of-a-kind company exclusively dedicated to supporting wildlife and conservation efforts. They are a collaboration of technologists, conservationists, educators, game designers, and strategists working together towards a stronger connection between people and wild animals.They envision a world where people's professional, personal and social lives are enhanced through daily interactions with wildlife, simply by doing the things they would be doing anyway.
Google is this year’s industry partner, a natural fit given Google’s many products touching the gaming ecosystem - from YouTube, to Google Play to the Cloud platform. Over the past two decades, Google remained committed to sustainability and continues to encourage others to join in improving the health of our planet. From becoming the first major company in 2007 becoming carbon neutral to the goal to operate 24/7 carbon-free by 2030, Google unifies their practices, partnerships, and products around a single mission — to foster sustainability at scale.
This year the Green Game Jam saw 41 games join the challenge of implementing an environmental activation into their games. Browse through each of the entries to find out how they have incorporated this year's theme, Wildlife, into their games.
Thank you for voting! The winners of the Green Game Jam 2023 will be announced on June 28th 2023.
The panel of UNEP judges consisting of Georgina, Athamandia Avlontis, David Jenssen, and Melissa De Kock have selected their favorite activation. They have looked at three key criteria: innovation, impact, and education. This prestigious recognition highlights activations that demonstrate groundbreaking ideas, significant influence in driving positive change, and effective educational components related to environmental sustainability.
Player's have voted and June's Journey wins this award for the 3rd year in a row. Players were encouraged to consider how well the level, feature, or event fits within the game, the knowledge gained about biodiversity, climate change, and the environment, and the level of inspiration to take action.
Our esteemed partner Google has selected their favorite activation based on three criteria: innovation, impact, and education. The chosen activation showcases remarkable innovation and effectively educates players about the environment, earning recognition from Google as a standout entry.
The games industry casted their votes for their favorite green activation. Everyone who works in the games industry is encouraged to consider factors such as the activation's alignment with the theme, its contribution to real-world impact, its boldness and creativity, and the effectiveness of its educational elements.
This new award category goes to a studio who has consistently been implementing green activations in their games and are taking their activations to the next level year over year.
This new award category goes to a studio who has consistently been implementing green activations in their games and are taking their activations to the next level year over year.
This new award category goes to a studio who is new to the Green Game Jam this year. They have gone above and beyond on their activation and hopefully they will inspire many more newcomers and veterans alike.
Our prestige panel of media judges Bert Purchese, George Osborn, and Shay Thompson have selected their favorite activation. Their choice is based on three key criteria: innovation, impact, and education, ensuring that the selected activation stands out for their creative approach.
The Best in Wildlife Award will be determined by a panel of wildlife experts including Warren K. Carlyle IV, Paula Kahumbu, Gautam Shah, and Alice Ruhweza have evaluated and recognized the activation that has demonstrated the most effective integration of the wildlife theme. Their expertise ensures a fair and informed assessment of the impact and quality of each entry's wildlife-focused content.
The Most Adoptable Award asked the gaming industry to vote for the activation that they believe can be seamlessly integrated into their own games. Evaluating factors such as scalability, ease of implementation across different games, potential for collaboration, and real-world impact, industry peers will determine which activation has the highest potential for widespread adoption and replication.
Today seven studios were crowned winners of the 2023 Green Game Jam, with Trailmix’s Love & Pies, Supercell’s Boom Beach, and Wooga’s June’s Journey among those that took home Awards from the ceremony held in London.
Playing for the Planet’s largest-ever survey has found that video games can spur positive actions and attitudes toward the environment in real life. The survey, targeted at gaming communities and designed to unearth attitudes towards environmental issues and environmental content within games, reached 380,000 players across ten games.
How have the world’s biggest studios found space in the best games for our iconic species? Three ecosystems home to three iconic species living were chosen as this year’s cause: the Western Indian Ocean (Manta Ray), the Himalayas (Snow Leopard) and the Amazon (Harlequin Toad). Studios came up with creative ways to flag engagement with these species. What does it take to make a difference through our favorite games?
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