Live the experience, learn the truth, change the future.

Warner Brothers Interactive Entertainment was honored this past week by the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for its efforts in the fight against the African AIDS epidemic with its new health game Pamoja Mtaani.  Launched in December 2008 as part of a public-private partnership with the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and serious game developer Virtual Heroes, Pamoja Mtaani is a computer-based game being played in three youth-centric locations throughout Nairobi, Kenya: NYS Nairobi, Harambee Center Mukuru and Mukuru Centre of HOPE.  The program is described as an innovative and complex prevention effort in the fight against AIDS.

About the game.

Pamoja Mtaani (translation, “Together in the Hood” ) is an action-based video game for Nairobi youth which tells the story of five East Africans, Judy the med student, Sean the techie, Lefty the footballer, Lady D. the musician, and Georgy the tout, as an everyday ride turns catastrophic when their bus is high-jacked.  Each individual experiences a loss, and the five strangers must come together on a quest for justice.

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The player selects one of the five characters and joins the team as they work through various neighborhoods to uncover barriers and discover facilitators to behavior change.  Like many epic health games, Pamoja Mtaani combines messaging aimed at changing behaviors to reduce HIV infections in youth with traditional game elements including a captivating storyline, mission assignments, and mini games from pool to a Guitar Hero-like game.

As the player watches the five role models learn the truth behind their actions and the true meaning of what brought them together, the creators of Pamoja Mtaani hope that the game will also influence player HIV risk behaviors, attitudes, and perceptions.

Congratulations to Warner Bros. Entertainment for winning this year’s Core Competence Business Excellence Award!  To learn more about the game, visit hivfreegeneration.warnerbros.com.