Aiming to rekindle love of Philippine culture and history in the nation’s learners, young Filipino indie game developer Audrey Stinson is set to launch her mobile game called Galà later this year.
Galà is a free-to-play mobile game that will be released first on Android phones. Taking inspiration from the Tagalog word meaning “travel” or “wander”, Galà lets players assume the role of students on a field trip around the Philippines.
But this is no ordinary school trip. As players journey through the nation’s regions, they will work together with NPC (non-player character) classmates to uncover artifacts and myths that distinguish the country’s colorful culture.
For instance, throughout their adventure, players will have the chance to hunt for treasures like the kubing, a mouth harp from Muslim Mindanao, or uncover myths such the Bakunawa, a serpent-like dragon that swallowed the moon.
In an exclusive interview, Stinson shared the stories and motivations behind Galà. A recent high school graduate and a self-taught developer, Stinson was inspired to create an educational game by personal experiences that sparked her drive to learn independently.
She recounted: “I was on a boat a few years ago with my family in Puerto Princesa and I was so captured by the colorful things like the fish and crabs underwater. When I got to my room, I spent time looking up the organisms I saw and learned about them. That sense of wonder, desire to learn, is what I aim to evoke in the players of Galà.”
“When people play my game, I don’t want them to feel like they’re being spoon-fed information. The goal is for them to be interested and excited about new ideas they’ve never engaged with before,” she enthused.
Stinson got the chance to make this game a reality when the game development organization she founded, kendikorp, won a game development grant from the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP). By combining the history of Philippine game development she obtained from the CCP and her own memories of fun, pre-pandemic school trips, she settled on Galà’s motifs, storyline, and inviting field trip theme.
While not the only tool that can be used to capture learners’ attention, Stinson maintains that video games are uniquely positioned to encourage learning. “I believe that this is because there’s nothing like the level of participation a player has in a video game, like it’s collaborative. It requires engagement.”
“The goal of Galà is to expose rather than educate,” Stinson said.
Can’t wait to try out Galà? Follow kendikorp on its Facebook and Twitter pages to stay updated on its latest announcements.
