5 Fun Games With a Higher Purpose

1. Darfur is Dying

In 2006, MTVu released a flash game to highlight the struggles millions faced in the Darfur region of Sudan, while the country engaged in a bloody civil war. Darfur is Dying was created to illustrate the difficulty of living among modern genocide. The game begins when the player selects a member of a Darfuri family living in a refugee camp. That player must then run several thousand meters to the water well and back, while hiding from trucks that contain janjaweed militia members looking to kidnap them on sight. If kidnapped, you learn what happens to captured Darfuris. Then, the game asks you to pick another family member and retry the water run. Succeed and you are taken to another portion of the game: a top-down view of the refugee camp, which you must keep fed and protected.The game prompted users to donate to humanitarian groups or contact representatives to encourage U.S. involvement. Although the crisis in Darfur is over, the game still exists online. MTV said that in its height, 1.2 million people around the globe played Darfur is Dying.

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Think games are only good for fun and distraction, absent of societal impact or deeper meaning? Not so fast.

As Mashable prepares for its Social Good Summit Sept. 22-24, we examined the ways that gaming can impact the world. We looked at games that approach socially relevance with fun and engaging concepts.

Most of the games on our list tackle international issues, for example, the reality of living in extreme poverty or the labor issues surrounding electronics manufacturing. Many games were simulations, like Darfur is Dying, but a few borrowed gameplay elements from currently popular social and mobile titles. You can see the similarities between WeTopia, a social game that lets users…
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