The students carried out a project about AfroGames, an innovative initiative that promotes the inclusion of young people from favelas and peripheral areas in the world of eSports, technology, and digital culture. The initiative, which combines education, professional training, and leisure, has been transforming lives by offering new prospects in areas that are traditionally inaccessible to many of these young people. For the project, the students interviewed members of the initiative, who shared their experiences, lessons learned, and the impact of Afro Games on their personal journeys. Check it out below:
Afro-Games is a social and educational initiative aimed at promoting the inclusion of young people from favelas and outlying areas in the world of electronic sports (eSports), technology, and digital culture. Created in Rio de Janeiro, the project offers free training in areas such as programming, English, and competitive gaming, such as League of Legends and Valorant.
In 2017, José Júnior, president of AfroReggae, approached Ricardo Chantilly (a music industry entrepreneur) to develop a music project, but Ricardo gave Júnior the idea of moving into the gaming field, as he had seen how much this market was growing. Also, something Júnior had noticed was that there were no Black people with great prominence in the gaming world, whether in development or in the competitive scene, so, with that, Junior and Chantilly conceived the project so that young people from Rio's favelas could have access to this field. In 2019, the project came to fruition, giving rise to Afro-Games in Vigário Geral (2019), Nova Holanda (2022), Morro do Timbau (2022), Vila do João (2022), Morro do Estado - Niterói (2023), and Morro do Cantagalo (2023).
"[…] If we don't even have 25% Black players in the elite of games (Free Fire, Valorant and all), we have some kind of flaw and we need to fix that flaw, to give opportunity to those who need the opportunity. […] When we give more access to these people, the level of the game usually rises.", Luca Alves, current coordinator of Afro-Games, said in a short interview on Instagram for the sports league LBEE (@lbeegg).
Something good happened to the entire Afro-Games team in 2022, when they were finalists and received significant recognition at the CCXP Awards, in the “Best Organization” category. Even though they didn't win, being one of the finalists already shows the potential this Rio de Janeiro project has (the CCXP Awards is an event that recognizes various segments of the pop culture and geek entertainment industry in Brazil, held in São Paulo).
Afro-Games annually promotes the Game Jam, a competition in which individuals or teams compete to produce a game within a short period of time, and the person or group that wins third, second, and first place will receive a prize selected by the event's organizers.
A short interview was conducted with João, 19 years old, and with Beatriz, 23 years old. Both study English, game design, and game development at the Nova Holanda unit.
Kauã: How was the whole process and experience of the Game Jam you had last year (in 2024)?
Beatriz: It was an amazing experience! For three weeks, my partner and I worked hard to create a game that would be fun and fit the theme of the Game Jam, which was Planetary Citizenship. With that, we created Gaia, a game in which you must strengthen a magical tree and protect it from the threats that arise during the night!
João: It was a really incredible experience, even though we didn't win, because otherwise it would have been even better […] But it was an incredible experience, it was the first fully finished, polished game I delivered. […] We had a month to produce the game, there were some small flaws, which were later fixed, but it was a really good experience, I made friends with someone I didn't talk to much in the course, we made the game, we talked a lot, and nowadays we're really close friends.
João created the game Junin Contra o Lixo do Mundo for the Game Jam. The 2024 AfroGameJAM had the following placements: team Gato-Frio with the game Gaia in 1st place (led by Beatriz), Team Hero with the game Earth Defenders in 2nd place (led by Marcos Vinicius), and team Amaruki with the game The Amaruki Saga in 3rd place (led by Onivaldo Pereira).
I kept asking the two of them how they see themselves in a few years in the gaming industry.
Kauã: How do you see yourselves in the gaming industry? João: I see myself making good games that please the audience. […] we made Cumbuca Labs, which is our own project, outside of Afro-Games, for us to produce our games and even promote them in the future. Beatriz: I hope to be able to establish Cumbuca Labs as a full studio, with more games produced, and to build our brand in this industry, taking part in even more competitions and committing ourselves as a team to improve our skills in the field!
I asked the interviewees the last question.
Kauã: How grateful are you for Afro-Games and the whole team for having provided this course for you?
João: I am very grateful to Afro-Games, for the simple fact that they provided good equipment for us to use in game development and even some design areas, like digitizing tablets […] And it was simply a course I had always wanted to take, but I couldn't afford to pay for a course, and then Afro-Games showed up right in front of me saying: "here, man, the course you want to take, totally free, with the same equipment that professionals use". That was really great for me, I'm very grateful! Beatriz: Absolutely! Even though I always liked games, I never saw this field as a possible career until I joined Afro-Games! I feel fulfilled to be able to produce games and reap their rewards, as well as to meet talented people with dreams similar to mine, with whom I can exchange ideas and share knowledge. None of this would be possible without the Afro core group, so I am extremely grateful for the space they provide for us. Afro-Games is not just a course, it's an opportunity and an initiative that opens young people's minds to the games industry. And also, it's incredible to know how important it is to know that this project exists, since there was none before it emerged to bring children, teenagers, and young adults into the spotlight in Brazil in electronic games. Afro-Games is an example of social transformation, showing that young people from the favelas can also take the lead and innovate in this country's games and technology scene.
