Videogame Helps Revitalize American Indian Languages

Language is the cornerstone of identity, and nowhere is the threat to identity caused by the extinction of languages more pronounced than in the indigenous cultures of the Americas. That's why Don Thorton, the grandson of one of the few remaining master speakers of the Cherokee language, has developed RezWorld, a videogame designed to engage tribal youth with their cultural heritage.

Blending The Sims, GTA and traditional games, RezWorld is a 3D-rendered PC affair that uses voice-recognition technology to let gamers communicate with in game characters. Although the demo is in Cherokee, the game can be customized to work with any language. Locations can be tuned to match real-world tribal structures and characters can be modified to look like actual tribal members.

The voice-recognition in RezWorld is derived from the same technology used in Tactical Irqai, which was developed to help U.S. military personnel learn local language and cultural nuances in the Middle East. In addition to spoken language, both games incorporate body language and inflection to give players a better feel for how a given dialect is actually used.

The thoroughly modern environment in which RezWorld is set also contributes to its appeal. Gamers move between rural and city environments and have access to vehicles. As in classic sandbox games like Grand Theft Auto, players can converse with any of a number of "intelligent" characters, who hand out missions and respond to players differently, depending on how they are approached. The difference is that in RezWorld, the player speaks into a microphone rather than choosing from a dialog tree. In one mission, if a player fails to properly thank a certain character for advice, the character quips, "Hey, who do you work for anyway? The feds?"

Thorton, who founded Thorton Media Interactive, told Indian Country Today that making RezWorld required balancing cultural relevance on two fronts — the traditional and the contemporary. "We tried really hard to make it funny and interesting. No one wants to feel like playing a game is a chore." At the same time, Thorton underscored the game's more serious purpose. "One of the main reasons we've made RezWorld is because we see the connection between the survival of tribal languages and the protection of tribal sovreignity." Thorton added that the game's technology has already been shown to be effective. "It's a proven methodology of teaching language learning — it's not an experimental methodology," he said, referring to studies of more than 25,000 users.

Thorton Media is currently looking for tribal partners to provide funds to expand development to a 12-level game. Once they find a partner, Thorton expects to deliver a finished game in less than eight months for a budget of about $1 million.

[via Indian Country Today]

Check out this trailer from the game.