At next week’s Imagine Cup finals in Redmond, a team of student developers from Nepal will be in the running for the top prize of $50 000 in the videogame category with a game themed around killing poachers.
The premise is decidedly close to the bone. It posits a future in which the Earth’s animal population has been decimated by years of poaching, but there’s a Terminator-esque twist; players take on the role of a cyborg that has been sent back in time to track and kill the poachers to prevent the total eradication of Earth’s wildlife.
The game’s co-creator Alex Rumba told Geek Wired that he and his fellow developers from Team Octavian are trying to get the message out about the ramifications of poaching, and the possible future the planet could be facing if it continues unabated.
It looks pretty good, too. The game’s official Imagine Cup page says “[Defend Your Territory] makes use of high graphics(sic) and we have tried to make even the minute things as real as possible”, and that holds true when you see the screenshots. Observe:
The game can be played alone or with friends online, and objectives must be met before players can progress to the next level. With multiple quests to complete and levels to play, the developers hope to encourage players to become more logical and rational about poaching.
Should they win in the videogame category, Team Octavian will compete for the overall prize at the Imagine Cup, to be handed out by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at the conclusion of the event next Friday.
[Source – Geek Wired, Imagine Cup]
