Against All Odds (video game)
Encyclopedia
Against All Odds is an Adobe Flash
video game developed by UNHCR
designed to teach players about the plight of refugee
s. Originally released in Swedish
in 2005, the game has been translated into several languages, the English
edition of which was released in November 2007.
Initial funding for the project came from a grant of NOK
1 million from Statoil
to UNHCR's Baltic and Nordic regional office, with the aim of developing a project to reach young people and promote integration in the region. UNHCR sought advice from Umeå University
regarding interactive media
for schools, and discussed ideas with the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training
and the Swedish Integration Board
.
UNHCR decided to proceed the project as a web-based game, a medium which could reach a large number of young people, require no distribution costs and minimal marketing costs. The game was aimed at 12 - 15 year olds, an age where people began to develop ideas regarding refugees and similar issues.
In Against All Odds, the player takes the role of a refugee, and plays through twelve stages - depicting his persecution and flight from his native country, through to eventual integration into a foreign country as an asylum seeker
. Complementing the game is a facts repository detailing the history of asylum, and refugee testimonies. A teacher's guide section provides discussion points and lesson ideas for the classroom. The game takes approximately 45 minutes to play through, coinciding with the typical length of a lesson.
Reception has been positive, prompting translations into multiple languages from its original Swedish. In 2006, the German edition of the game, LastExitFlucht was awarded the Austrian State Prize for Multimedia and e-Business in the Knowledge and Learning category. The jury praised the game for building understanding, empathy and concern for the plight of refugees in the player.
Adobe Flash
Adobe Flash is a multimedia platform used to add animation, video, and interactivity to web pages. Flash is frequently used for advertisements, games and flash animations for broadcast...
video game developed by UNHCR
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , also known as The UN Refugee Agency is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to...
designed to teach players about the plight of refugee
Refugee
A refugee is a person who outside her country of origin or habitual residence because she has suffered persecution on account of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or because she is a member of a persecuted 'social group'. Such a person may be referred to as an 'asylum seeker' until...
s. Originally released in Swedish
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
in 2005, the game has been translated into several languages, the English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
edition of which was released in November 2007.
Initial funding for the project came from a grant of NOK
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
1 million from Statoil
Statoil
Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...
to UNHCR's Baltic and Nordic regional office, with the aim of developing a project to reach young people and promote integration in the region. UNHCR sought advice from Umeå University
Umeå University
Umeå University is a university in Umeå in the mid-northern region of Sweden. The university was founded in 1965 and is the fifth oldest within Sweden's present borders....
regarding interactive media
Interactive media
Interactive media normally refers to products and services on digital computer-based systems which respond to the user’s actions by presenting content such as text, graphics, animation, video, audio, etc.-Terminology:...
for schools, and discussed ideas with the Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training
Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training
The Norwegian Directorate for Education and Training is Norwegian government agency under the Ministry of Education and Research. It is responsible for development of primary and secondary education, including the management of the Norwegian Support System for Special Education .The organization,...
and the Swedish Integration Board
Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality (Sweden)
The Ministry of Integration and Gender Equality is a ministry of the Government Offices of Sweden. Its areas of responsibility include consumer affairs, democracy issues, gender equality, human rights, integration issues, metropolitan affairs, minority issues, non-governmental organizations and...
.
UNHCR decided to proceed the project as a web-based game, a medium which could reach a large number of young people, require no distribution costs and minimal marketing costs. The game was aimed at 12 - 15 year olds, an age where people began to develop ideas regarding refugees and similar issues.
In Against All Odds, the player takes the role of a refugee, and plays through twelve stages - depicting his persecution and flight from his native country, through to eventual integration into a foreign country as an asylum seeker
Right of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
. Complementing the game is a facts repository detailing the history of asylum, and refugee testimonies. A teacher's guide section provides discussion points and lesson ideas for the classroom. The game takes approximately 45 minutes to play through, coinciding with the typical length of a lesson.
Reception has been positive, prompting translations into multiple languages from its original Swedish. In 2006, the German edition of the game, LastExitFlucht was awarded the Austrian State Prize for Multimedia and e-Business in the Knowledge and Learning category. The jury praised the game for building understanding, empathy and concern for the plight of refugees in the player.