"Reclaim" video game voiced entirely by Ojibwe community members helps keep language alive
A video game is helping people experience the Ojibwe culture in a new way.
"Reclaim!" was designed by Grassroots Indigenous Multimedia to make learning Ojibwe immersive and accessible.
"We wanted to create a kind of place for the language to be fun and entertaining," Lead Developer Anangookwe Hermes-Roach said.
The story follows a young girl named Miskwa on a journey that reconnects her with her roots. While visiting her grandmother in the countryside, Miskwa is sent out to pick blueberries. She falls asleep and wakes up in a mysterious, magical forest.
To find her way out, Miskwa must solve puzzles and navigate different environments while learning Ojibwe words and phrases along the way.
Hermes-Roach said designing the game helped her reconnect with her own culture.
"I just find myself having fun with the language in a way that I didn't expect," she said. "It does make me feel closer to my culture and closer to the lineage of that culture."
The game is voiced entirely by members of the Ojibwe community. While Ojibwe is considered an endangered language, Hermes-Roach said efforts like this are critical in keeping it alive.
"There's so much in language that informs perspective and worldview and communicates the values of a culture," she said.
Thousands of people are playing the game for fun, but the goal goes beyond entertainment. Developers say they hope to see the game used in classrooms as an educational tool.
Hermes-Roach said the game is meant to be an additional tool and starting point for players interested in learning more.
"I hope Reclaim can be a good invitation into that experience," she said.