My narrative game is about the struggles that Palestinians face in the current moment from the tight blockade and attacks by the Israeli occupation. The game is called Life As A Palestinian. The reason for choosing such a topic was to raise awareness about the severe sacrifices and hurdles that these people face every day. Their sacrifices are transferred to others only through social media platforms which have been blurring the information about Palestine. This can be illustrated only as bias towards Palestinians as the platforms are preventing people from seeing the full picture or the result of the Israeli genocide. Gaza is considered one the densest populated cities in the world, and yet it is still attacked regardless of the innocent civilians who are trying to use their right of defense against the occupation. What is happening now is basically a war crime, Israel is punishing the whole population even though it’s their right to defend their land. I made the game for the purpose of raising more awareness and to shed light on the undergoing pain that most people do not know. Most of the game scenarios have somehow sorrowful endings. This is because Palestinians’ hardships and sufferings are inevitable. Most of the written scenarios are conducted through interviewing some of my Palestinian friends.
I started the game by introducing what’s happening in Palestine and made a character with a Palestinian name to be relevant to the player. Each step in the game was based on certain critical decisions that affected the character and his family. Then, after making a decision, I explain what has happened and introduce the player to the next decision through the scenarios of the game. Based on the reflections I got on the game, the scenarios were effective in sending emotions to the player. Some of my friends that it really gets them thinking about what to do in these dilemmas which Palestinians face daily. If I had more time, I would have developed the scenarios more and written more to stimulate the thinking and the emotions of the players more effectively. In addition, I would like to introduce more characters in the game so the players can have a better and wider scope of what are the palestinians facing across various ages, ethnicities, and genders. In the short term developing the game, I think adding more pictures and videos to be more interactive and visually appealing will be beneficial to reach the goal of having empathy and raising awareness. To deepen the emotional connection, I would incorporate more nuanced and poignant storytelling elements. This might involve more dialogue, character development, and backstories that provide context and depth to the characters’ lives.
Researching the lives of Palestinians in the current period has deepened my understanding of their struggles. This process made me more aware of the complexities of this conflict. Also, the narrative structure made me develop a stronger sense of empathy by creating characters and scenarios based on real-life experiences. The design process of the game showed me the importance of storytelling in raising awareness and fostering empathy. I learned somehow to balance emotional engagement with informative content. On the other hand, conducting interviews with Palestinian friends and verifying with credible news sources improved my research skills. I learned how to gather and integrate diverse perspectives and information into one narrative. Overall, developing “Life As A Palestinian” was an extremely beneficial and unique experience. It taught me the power of storytelling to inspire others. The process for sure was very long and exhausting but at the same time, it was worthwhile. I wish I could spread this game more to raise more awareness about the conflict.
Game link:
https://forms.gle/QLk7uccomjnGdhUNA
Information source:
The information that the game was based on was conducted through interviewing 5 Palestinians from different backgrounds. Some of them had suffered in the recent attacks and some of them were just telling me what had happened to their family friends. I did not depend only on their insights but I also tried to verify them from credible news sources such as BBC and Aljazeera.
References:
- Varshalomidze, T. (2024, May 19). Israel’s war on Gaza live: Dozens of civilians killed in barbaric attacks. Al Jazeera. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2024/5/19/israels-war-on-gaza-live-dozens-of-civilians-killed-in-barbaric-attacks
- BBC News. (2024, March 22). Gaza Strip in maps: How life has changed. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-20415675
- Amra, A. (2023, October 7). Pictures: Israel at war – Hamas gunmen launch attack from Gaza. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/pictures/pictures-israel-at-war-hamas-gunmen-launch-attack-gaza-2023-10-07/WZNDM6K2KRPHBCQF54N3P2VZYA
- Abu Mustafa, I. (2023, October 7). Pictures: Israel at war – Hamas gunmen launch attack from Gaza. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/pictures/pictures-israel-at-war-hamas-gunmen-launch-attack-gaza-2023-10-07/WZNDM6K2KRPHBCQF54N3P2VZYA
thanks for this important and timely game. I wish the scenarios would not end abruptly when the brother dies – you should have still continued so we know what happens to our player in Egypt, or at least give the chance a player to “start over” again not necessarily end the game, you know?