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Draft:Video games in Africa

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Video games in Africa is a sector that emerged from 1994, when the first independent studio in Africa, Celestial Games, established to South Africa. The sector then developed slowly with the establishment of Ubisoft in Casablanca, Morocco in 1998 and the creation of local companies such as Madiba Olivier, creator of Aurion: The Legacy of the Kori-Odan, by Wesley Kirinya who designs the first African 3D independent game, Adventures of Nyangi[1] · [2] · [3] · [4] or the Malagasy studio Lomay, creator of the racing game Gazkar[5]. The first initiatives and the democratisation of smartphones and internet access then allow new projects to see the day[6].

History[edit]

The history of the video game industry on the African continent began in 1996 with the release on DOS by Celestial Games, the first African video game studio, of Toxic Bunny, the first African video game. This platformer puts the player in the shoes of Toxic, a mutant rabbit who seeks to find the person responsible for the chaos on Earth[7] · [8].

In 1998, Ubisoft opened in Casablanca, Morocco, the first video game studio in North Africa[7] · [9] · [10]. The studio is constituted in 2010 of 150 employees[11].

In 2000, Ubisoft Casablanca was released on PC, Nintendo 64, and Dreamcast, Donald Duck: Goin' Quackers, the first African 3D video game, also the first African video game to be licensed by a video game console constructor[12] · [13].

In 2002, I-Imagine Interactive, a South African studio created in 1999 by Dan Wagner[14] was released on Xbox[14] · [15] · [7], Chase: Hollywood Stunt Driver. Later some other video games are developed by the studio (including Final Armada released in 2007 on PS2 and PSP[16] · [17]) but they do not achieve the expected success, which causes the expatriation of most employees. In 2009, Football Genius: The Ultimate Quiz was released on Xbox 360. This is the last game from the studio which has since been inactive.

In 2007, Wesley Kirinya (founder of the studio Gwimgrafx Studios), released Adventures of Nyangi, the first Kenyan video game, also the first independent African video game in 3D[1] · [2] · [3] · [4]. This game puts the player in the shoes of Nyangi, a woman who must find rare African artifacts.

In 2013, the studio Cyan Girls (composed of 3 engineers from the Ecole Polytechnique de Dakar)[18] · [19] released Dakar Madness, the first Senegalese videogame[20] · [21] · [22].

In May 2014, Nelli Studio released e-Fanorona. This mobile video game is a digital adaptation of the fanorona, a traditional Malagasy board game[23].

On May 9, 2015, Ousseynou Khadim Bèye, an engineer from the Ecole Polytechnique de Dakar and the Ecole Centrale de Lyon released Cross Dakar City. This 2D mobile game tackles societal issues by putting the player in the shoes of Mamadou, a talibé child in search of his biological parents[24] · [25] · [26].

In June 2015, the studio Black Division Games released on mobile, Nairobi X, the first independent African video game judged to be of professional quality. This apocalyptic first-person shooter video game offers the player to play as a soldier member of one of the elite Kenyan units and fighting against aliens came to retrieve a powerful weapon located in the dome of the Kenyatta International Conference Center and then destroy the world. The video game has been a huge success with over 21,000 downloads in two months[27] · [28].

In December 2015, LimPio Studio released The Boy In Savannah, the first Togolese video game. This 2D adventure game offers the player to play as a little boy who evolves in the savannah. The second version of the game, available on Android, was released in October 2016[29] · [30].

On April 14, 2016, after 13 years of development, the studio Kiro'o Games released on the platform Steam, Aurion: The Legacy of the Kori-Odan, the first Cameroonian videogame[31] · [32]. The studio at the origin of the game had a hard time becoming operational, about 10 years, encountering problems with internet access and electrification[32]. Olivier Madiba, at the origin of the project, explains that it is a "fantasy" game quite different from the usual games of the genre, since the theme is that of African roots. Twenty-five designers and programmers participated in the project[33]. The game was released thanks to a call for contributions launched in mid-2013 that raised 120 million CFA francs, or about 183,000 euros[33] · [32] · [7].

On June 13, 2016, Ubisoft closed its studio of 48 employees based in Casablanca. The studio had participated in the creation of thirty games[9] · [7].

On August 26, 2016, Mahaman Sani Housseyni Issa (founder of the MOGMedia Design studio), a young Nigerien graphic designer, released The Heroes of the Sahel, the first Nigerien video game. This 2D action game playable on Android offers the player to play as "Shamsou", a superhero wearing a tunic in the colors of the Nigerien national flag and using solar energy to fight his enemies[34] · [35] · [36]. The game has had some success, with 4,000 downloads in the first 2 weeks of its release[34], and nearly 10,000 downloads in two years[37]. The Heroes of the Sahel is later declined in "Shamsou the sun warrior", a cartoon that tells in detail the origin of the superhero[38]. An animated film is also being produced in Niger by the studio MOGMedia Design (studio of the young graphic designer) and the studio GLADISK (studio of Galadima Issaka, the childhood friend of the graphic designer)[39] · [40]. MOGMedia Design will subsequently release 3 other games: KASHE MACIZAI[41] · [42], released on April 27, 2017, Dan Kwarai[43], released on June 12, 2017, and JIRGUIN KASSA[44], released on February 6, 2018, before being finally followed by ReiviloDius Art, a second Nigerien studio that will publish on April 14, 2018 its game SODJA[45] · [46].

In August 2016, the studio Irooko released The Adventures of Béhanzin, Benin’s first video game[47]. This video game released on Android puts the player in the shoes of King Behanzin, a historical figure of the African resistance against colonialism[48].

On March 15, 2017, the Lomay studio released on Android Gazkar, the first Malagasy racing video game. This game offers the player to roam the streets of Antananarivo using vehicle models similar to those used daily in capital[49] · [5] · [50].

In 2018, Hervé Yvis, a Franco-Nigerien developer, created ZakiGames; the first platform designed to promote African video games. With the ambition to use the development of the video game market in Africa as a lever to accelerate its educational and economic development, and at the same time highlight its cultural heritage; the platform was able to present to its users video games such as Lamb (Senegalese wrestling) of DofSoftware, Kissoro Tribal Game (Variant of the Awalé) of Masseka Game Studio, or TOTEM: African Legend (Totem (ritual object)) of MOGMedia Design. The platform was accessible via a website as well as via an Android application downloadable from the Google Play Store[51] · [52] · [53].

In 2020, Ousmane William Kebe[54], a young Senegalese developer released on Android "Car Rapide Senegal"[55] · [56]. This video game features the "fast car", emblematic public transport of Senegale[57].

In August 2022, Teddy Kossoko (founder of Masseka Game Studio) announced the launch of Gara, a platform accessible via a website and an Android application. Gara has two objectives: simplify the sale of creative content (video games and e-books) in Africa through the support of the main payment methods used on the continent, and promote creative content (video games and e-books) from Africa[58].

In August 2023, the MOGMedia Design studio announces a 3D remake of the video game Les Héros du Sahel[59].

Media and events[edit]

The city of Johannesburg, South Africa, hosts an annual video game fair called « rAge »[7].

There is only one magazine dedicated to video games and new technologies on the continent, NAG online (New Age Gaming online)[7].

Industry[edit]

The few African publishers face piracy, financing and distribution difficulties, as well as a lack of competent personnel[7]. Some games have nevertheless benefited from public support such as Aurion: The Legacy of the Kori-Odan, the game of the Cameroonian studio Kiro'o Games, which received the sponsorship of the Ministry of Arts and Culture of Cameroon[7].

In 2012, South Africa led the African video game economy, with a total turnover of 1.7 billion rand, and 3.5 million players, twice the turnover of music[60].

In the 2017 ranking of the world’s top 100 video game consumers in terms of income, Africa is represented by only 7 countries: Egypt (41), Nigeria (45), South Africa (54), Algeria (57), Morocco (59), Kenya (87) and Tunisia (89)[61].

Studios and developers[edit]

  • Betsaleel Studio (Cameroon)[62]
  • Illimix 3D studio (Cameroon)[63]
  • Kola Studios (Uganda)[64]
  • Kuluya (Nigeria)[64]
  • Leti Arts (Ghana, Kenya)[64] · [7]
  • Lomay (Madagascar)[65]
  • Maliyo Games (Nigeria)[64]
  • MOGMedia Design (Niger)[34]
  • Nelli Studio (Madagascar) [23]
  • Ousmane William Kebe (Senegal)[66]
  • Ousseynou Khadim BEYE (Senegal)[67]
  • Picseru (Senegal)[63]
  • Work'D (Ivory Coast)[63]

Practice and training[edit]

The practice of video games in Africa is quite singular since on the continent, at least in sub-Saharan Africa, it is practiced almost exclusively in specialized rooms, and on some targeted games only, because of the lack of domestic material[7].

In West Africa and Equatorial Africa, the market is smaller, there are very rarely game consoles, development was mainly oriented in the 2010s in the field of games on smartphones[68].

Jjiguene Tech Hub, an association of thirty volunteers (2015) founded in 2012 by Marième Jamme and training in computer science in Sénégal[69].

A campus to train students in video game professions was created by Ubisoft near its Casablanca studio but was closed a year and a half later[9] · [7].

In Yaoundé (Cameroon), there is an association of gamers of Yaoundé "Kamer Games Yaoundé"[33].

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c "Wesley Kirinya, (Founder, Lead Developer Gwimgrafx Studios Limited)". African Global Networks.
  2. ^ a b c "Adventures of Nyangi". Timbuktu Chronicles.
  3. ^ a b c "Gaming industry hits high points". pd.co.ke. 25 July 2019. Archived from the original on 2024-05-26.
  4. ^ a b c " Kenya Games Industry". Polygon. 3 July 2013..
  5. ^ a b "«Gazkar»: 1er jeu de voitures 100% malgache". RFI. 28 July 2017.
  6. ^ "Afrique numérique ; quand les jeux vidéo décollent". cpafrique.fr. 4 April 2023.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Léo Pajon (9 December 2015). "Jeux vidéo : la percée du made in Africa". jeuneafrique.com.
  8. ^ a b "Toxic Bunny sur MobyGames". MobyGames.
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Appendices[edit]

Bibliography[edit]

Related articles[edit]

Video games

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