A QUALITATIVE CONTENT ANALYSIS OF AFRICAN VIDEO GAMES DEVELOPED BY STUDENTS

It is necessary to move away from non-colonised perspectives in video games. There have been numerous issues with the representation of Africa and the portrayal of Africans in video games. It is necessary to discuss the essential aspects of Africanisation in video games to ensure that the African perspective is represented clearly. By utilising the participatory culture framework, students were grouped together to create video games with African themes. Students developed 17 unique games, all based on African themes. Eight unique characteristics were extracted from the video games. These characteristics include aesthetics, music and dance, mythological creatures, religion, race, play style, landscape, and language. This paper aims to inspire the representation of the rich African heritage in video games of African origin. In this way, we can ensure that the knowledge of indigenous African entities is projected, transmitted, and protected, despite the prevalence of Western approaches worldwide. Therefore, the paper recommends proper representation of African culture in both local and Western games and suggests further research to better understand the African phenomenon. The International Journal of Games and Social Impact, Vol. 3 No. 2 (2025): Game Jams, Game-Making with Values, and Games Through and For Culture