We won! 

What a way to start 2021.

Over the years, on my journey in the Game Development Industry, I have been blessed with great friends. So when I found out that we as the Moran StoryLab would be participating in an all-female XR Hackathon this month I reached out to my friend Roy for some advice. 

Roy had participated in the previous XR (extended reality) Hackathon by the same company BlackRhinoVR and their team had won an award. I went through some ideas with Roy after which he gave me a task to research a few things. And one of those was the parable of the talents in the Bible.

I found this a strange way to approach finding Tech solutions but I trust Roy so I went ahead and looked for the parable to refresh my memory. That is when I saw the correlation between the message of the parable and the theme of the XR Hackathon which was "Eradication of Systemic Corruption using VR/AR Solutions".

The Parable of the Talents Matthew 25:14-30

For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. 

Then he went away. He who had received the five talents made five talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money.

Now after a long time, the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, "Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more."

His master said to him, "Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master."

He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying. "Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours."

But his master answered him, " You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming, I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents.

For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

The overarching issue we noted as a team when it comes to corruption is mismanagement of funds so this parable resonated. However, while we went through our ideas as the Moran StoryLab team, we realized there is a need for people to be educated on various important issues such as the fact that we have paid taxes since we were children through everyday goods. Therefore even if some of us don't pay taxes directly from our salary, we still need to care how the funds are used. 

Another learning opportunity was that there are ways unknown by most that one can report corrupt officials anonymously while protecting themselves and their loved ones.

At first, our idea was jumbled up. We had so many problems we wanted the solution to solve. But thanks to the witty message by Brian Afande the Managing Director of BlackRhinoVR keep it simple stupid we decided to simplify our solution. So on the first day of the Hackathon when all the other teams hacked away, we went back to the drawing board to simplify our solution and bring some form of clarity.

The team going back to the drawing board

These were the most trying moments during the Hackathon but we somehow pulled through. Using the resources we had at our disposal, we saw it fit to make an educational augmented reality experience that teaches the user how to report corruption cases anonymously so as to protect their identities as witnesses.

We called our solution Whistle Blowing 101

As we've learnt from the parable we are all given responsibilities according to our abilities. We as a team,  after the short training we had received from BlackRhinoVR mentors, were able to come up with a simple solution that would help in solving a crucial problem. A problem so crucial that lives have been lost as a result.

During the presentation of our solutions, we made sure to mention a few of the many lives that were affected due to lack of knowledge on how to protect themselves. Those examples included John Githongo, David Munyakei and Boniface Mwangi who upon revealing corruption underwent some grave repercussions. 

Upon revealing the Anglo Leasing scandal, John Githongo sought exile in the UK due to claims of a threat to his life. After exposing the Goldenberg scandal, David Munyakei was sacked from his job at the Central Bank of Kenya. As a result, he was not able to buy some medicine he needed and later succumbed to the illness. 

Boniface Mwangi, on the other hand, had to send his family to the United States because his activism against corruption put them all in danger. As seen in his award-winning documentary film Softie the move affected his relationship with his family including his firstborn son almost denouncing him as a father.

It is as a result of such stories that people turn a blind eye to corruption because we do not know how to protect ourselves. There is so much to lose as individuals. However, now with our solution, people will know there are more secure ways of reporting corruption cases such as going through the Ethics and Anti-Corruption (EACC) website and filling in forms anonymously. 

In the parable, the "unfaithful servant" accused their master of some form of impunity but did not seem to have any evidence. Such accusations even to date fall on deaf ears; that is why to further our solutions upon funding, we would like to come up with a platform where people can upload videos and photos as evidence which will go through some form of fact-checking among other procedures.

In the spirit of keeping things simple stupid, we made our prototype the simplest and most straight forward way we could. We avoided making a prototype of how we envisioned the future software solution to look and resorted to stating it during the presentation. I loved how easy it was to explain what our solution was about and how when the judges sent questions our way we were all able to assist one another in answering them. 

The synergy throughout the Hackathon was amazing. Our bond as a team grew in leaps and bounds and now I look forward to working on a 360-degree video shoot together later this year. 

After the Hackathon, we had a Protecting Your Intellectual Property talk organized by BlackRhinoVR on the following Tuesday to prepare us for the future should our projects get funding for further development. 

We won 600 dollars by practising simplicity and now our 2021 is off to a great start. I would like to challenge you to find ways to simplify the things you do. Ease into them and find ways to relieve stress. Simplify the goals you have so that you have tiny little habits you do regularly towards the achievement of the larger goal. When you get the chance read the book Atomic Habits. And on that note. I wish you the very best this new year and remember to keep it simple stupid. 

I remember watching my desk mate and fellow classmates walk past me during assembly to the front of the podium to receive gifts for doing well in exams . While this happened I would wonder when it would ever be me. At times I would daydream walking up the podium to get my Cadbury chocolate for grades well earned. Yet again and again, I would wake up and find myself in the same place leading on the other side, with no chocolate in sight apart from the occasional generous friend giving me a kionjo.

In the afternoon, after class, I would stay in behind longer than usual while my deskmate went for Hockey practice so that I could catch up on some reading. I would do the same during the weekends when she and other high performing students would go out of school for Sports competitions. 

I did not let myself get into Sports because I was scared that my grades would deteriorate even further. If only I knew what I know now as someone working in the Video Game Development Industry, on the importance of play in activating the brain for learning and strategic thinking. 

Anyway, I digress; my daydreams were the closest I got to receiving such a chocolatey gift. I know, I know you must be thinking gosh how petty. All the same, I am a human being and coupled with my raging teenage hormones at that time I was allowed to feel that way. 

Most schools did not have such gifts and students still did well. However, that was not my reality and for that, I felt inadequate. 

The fusion of art and tech is the future; creativity is getting more on demand during this time of accelerated digital transformation -- Wendi Ndaki

Don't get me wrong I had my strong points. I remember being awarded the second position for drawing a portrait during an inter-house competition. But now looking back, I realize no one saw it fit to give us brilliant creative students chocolate as recognition for our creative genius. It tells you a lot about the education system and the solutions for these ingrained mindsets that the sciences are the most important and should be given priority at the expense of the arts.

Anyway, I laboured through high school and ended up with a good enough grade to do a Diploma so as to qualify to do my Degree. This only happened because I am blessed with caring parents who made sure I went through my University education. 

I ended up in IT and I decided to embrace it. I eventually fell in love with it which led to me starting this blog and joining the gaming industry where I feel most at home because of how art and tech fuse seamlessly.

To be honest, one must be strong-willed and passionate about art to go through such experiences and still be at it. And because of that, I celebrate myself.

Having gone through the hardships I did during my time in High School, I have come to appreciate applications that gamify learning such as Mavis Beacon for typing and Duolingo for learning foreign languages. Because I love learning new things. It's just the method of learning I used in High School that did not work for me.

I learn best by doing practical stuff that is why Art was my favourite subject in High School and IT grew on me in Uni. 

I used to attend classes during the day and work in the ICT department in Uni at night. I would juggle that with doing assignments and also being an active member of a student-run organisation called AIESEC where I would eventually get elected as a Vice President. I even got to travel to Rwanda as a web design volunteer teacher in a High School in Huye through AIESEC.

My alma mater USIU-A made learning fun and my time on campus was full of adventure. I still remember the 24 hour ride from Nairobi to Kigali by bus for that volunteer opportunity. And how we would go to the Rift Valley region for leadership conferences on a regular, both through AIESEC and USIU-A as student leaders.

As I sit here writing this, my life still has its challenges but I feel like my past experiences ground me. I am more appreciative as my life takes shape and as I establish myself as a Creative Entrepreneur. 

I currently have clientele from both the Arts and Tech industries. I have travelled to numerous countries fully sponsored because I chose to be bold, follow my heart and do what I love. I recently spoke in a panel with CEOs and influential people in Kenya and I almost did not recognize myself. I received a good sum of money for winning as a team at the Hack Ur Culture Hackathon. My team Hack Circle also received funding from the Goethe Institute Joburg to further develop another solution we created at the same Hackathon.

I have found my calling in the fusion of the arts and technology and I intend to share this passion through the work I produce and hopefully make a difference through inspiring stories that encourage those hesitant to follow this path that it is possible to succeed in it.

It will be tough at times but totally worth it. Let it be imperfect as you start and watch it improve as you go. We are always on a journey towards an elusive perfection, so let yourself be perfectly imperfect. And try try try. Apply for those opportunities and then let go, meanwhile count your blessings and stay positive. All will be well.

I never got that chocolate in High School but I tried my best. Now I can buy myself all the chocolate I want with money earned doing things I absolutely love. What more could one ask for? I did my Diploma while my classmates were doing their Degree I felt low in the beginning but when I went to do my Degree I achieved more than I thought I would. And so can you, that thing that is putting you down right now will make for a great story in the future. Be kind to yourself and those around you and let yourself be perfectly imperfect.

Did you know that the Video Game Industry is bigger than Hollywood? Well, it is and in 2020, the global games market is set to generate more than $160 billion and increase by 7.3% year on year. In Africa, the market for games has risen from $105 million to $570 million in just four years! The African population is young with the average age being 20 years. This will form the labour force of the future, as well as the gaming community that will raise the user base for games.

Oscar and Oluwatosin the Co-Founders. Their talk can be found here.

The Africacomicade Gamathon is a virtual event that is hosted on itch.io. It is an initiative that was started by Oscar Micheal and Oluwatosin Ogunyebi to showcase African Creatives to the World. This is not only limited to the Creatives in the Gaming Industry but also those in the wider Entertainment Industry like film, music and content creation. Gaming is an industry that brings other industries together and this will become even more evident once you register for free and attend the training sessions and talks. 

The aim of Africacomicade is to let the world know we have African Game Developers who are doing well. And to invite Creatives of all kinds from Storytellers to Illustrators, Marketers to Animators, Musicians to Sound Technicians and more to learn how they can plug into this inclusive Industry. It is a chance to show all these people the job opportunities they can leverage.

The Gamathon started on the 24th and will be running till the 30th of this month August 2020. The first 5 days are dedicated to training through talks and panel discussions. A lot of insight into the gaming industry will be shared by Industry leaders. Then on the final two days, Creatives from different African Countries will team up and create games for 48 hours in the exciting Africacomicade Game Jam.

If you are a newbie, not to worry. There will be training sessions in the program such as using platforms like Buildbox which requires no coding to create a game but focusses more on logic. Communication about all these training opportunities will be done through the Africacomicade Discord channel. Gaming and Game Publishing companies will also come in and inform new as well as established Game Developers what they have to offer.

The training sessions are in an effort to assist in the education needed in the Gaming Industry. It seeks to highlight how there are endless opportunities for what one can do with their gaming skills. 

As a player you can become a professional game tester and assist Game Developers with the much-needed feedback during the different development phases of their games. You can also become a Professional Esports Athlete and stand a chance to earn just as much as the professional football players do.

So as you can see there will be lots of activities before the Game Jam this weekend. If you are a Creative and, to be honest, I believe we all are, you may want to register and learn how you can offer your skills in this fast-growing Industry. Also, note that there are lots of prizes to be won. I look forward to seeing more African Creatives building their networks and growing in the Industry. And I hope you will be one of them.