Games are more than just entertainment products

In recent years, more and more movies and TV shows have begun to incorporate public service content into the storyline, such as the hit movie “My People, My Homeland,” which shares several stories focusing on the revitalization of rural areas to alieve poverty. In fact, in addition to movies and TV dramas, games are also increasingly taking up the responsibility of spreading public service announcements.

On October 17, CCTV Finance and Tencent’s Lightspeed & Quantum Studios Group jointly launched a poverty alleviation public service mini-game named “Break Away from Poverty And Get Well-Off: Walk Through A Village To See Poverty Alleviation (脱贫奔小康: 走村直播看脱贫)” was officially launched on the WeChat platform.

This is a 3D parkour game built on the Cocos Creator 3D engine. In this game, you play the role of a driver delivering supplies to impoverished mountain villages. You’ll need to collect resources such as water, saplings, books, school uniforms, and more while carefully avoiding all kinds of tricky roadblocks along the way.

Rolling stones fall on the road all the time, and dead trees are caught in the middle of the road, becoming real difficulties for your small truck. You also have to be careful to avoid cattle and sheep that may scurry onto the road at any time. They are the villagers’ valuable assets.

When you deliver the supplies safely to your destination, you’ll get unexpected surprises: Paper cranes sent by the children, a group photo with grandmothers, or small stories on poverty alleviation, is recorded in a small diary that the player writes for you to read.

In addition, the game also has a photo collection system where each photo represents a true story of poverty alleviation.

Since July 25, CCTV Finance’s “Live Village Walk to See Poverty Alleviation” program team has been on a trip to Xuzhou, Jiangsu province, to report on poverty alleviation for more than three months (until late October). These real-life events are collected in this game in the form of photos, through which players can truly feel the journey of poverty alleviation.

Games are no longer just entertainment products but also communication carriers that can connect with real problems. The characteristics of mini-games make them more efficient and convenient in carrying and spreading information compared to radio or TV ads you see in the west. More than a billion WeChat users now can learn about traditional culture and spread public welfare news easily and in a more exciting way.

Included in the game is a chartable way to help the poor with your friends to get exclusive skins for your team when you play. So what are you waiting for? Let’s help the poor together! A thrilling parkour level and a moving story of poverty alleviation!