In commemoration of World Environment Day, Reliance Games announced its green initiative to raise awareness about the hazards of plastic among children and youth. Building upon the tremendous success of campaigns over the past two years, which reached over 15 million youth and inspired the collection of 500 million plus virtual plastic bottles, the studio is aiming for a hat-trick this year. Expanding its efforts to support the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) Tide Turners Plastic Challenge for World Environment Day, Reliance Games continues to champion eco-consciousness and combat plastic pollution.
This global initiative engages youth in addressing the urgent issue of plastic pollution, which poses a threat to life in oceans, rivers, and land. Notably, Reliance Games has incorporated the issue of plastic pollution into four of their popular games, published under Zapak Games: Little Singham, Little Singham Cycle Race, Little Singham Super Skater, and Kicko and Super Speedo.
The in-game activation is part of Reliance Games’ support of Playing for the Planet, an initiative facilitated by UNEP since its launch in September 2019 at the UN Climate Summit which works with the games industry to decarbonise the industry and test green activations in games.
The Tide Turners youth program, backed by the worldwide Scout and Girl Guide movement, engages an impressive count of 500,000 youth across more than 30 countries.
Sam Barratt, chief of youth, education and advocacy who oversaw the Tide Turners and the Playing for the Planet initiative at UNEP, emphasised the importance of raising awareness among young people, stating, “At UNEP, we have been impressed to see the integration of the plastic theme in the Little Singham mobile games over the past two years. Educating people about what actions we can all take to change our relationship with plastics is an important first step. This year, it’s good to see that Reliance Games is raising the bar by leveraging the power of four of its games to reach out to the youth. We need more games like these serving to educate and inspire more young individuals to become environmental advocates and help us beat plastic pollution.”
“At Reliance Games, we are deeply committed to supporting green initiatives and fostering environmental awareness among our young players. Through our work with UNEP and the integration of plastic pollution themes in our popular games, we aim to inspire a new generation to take action against plastic waste. We are proud to strengthen our relationship with UNEP’s Playing for the Planet initiative, and our partners, Warner Bros Discovery and Sony Pictures Network India, in raising awareness about plastic pollution. Our goal is to reach 150 million runs and 50 billboards per game, maximising our exposure to spread the message. This year, our collaboration aligns with the Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, enabling us to reach children and young adults who love playing games and are fans of popular IPs like Little Singham, and Kicko and Super Speedo. Through our games, we deliver a crucial message that resonates deeply,” said Reliance Entertainment Digital CEO Amit Khanduja.
Through inventive gameplay mechanics, players actively collect virtual plastic bottles and prohibited plastic items, reinforcing the significance of reducing, reusing, and recycling plastics. All four games prominently feature the World Environment Day integration and messaging, underscoring their commitment to global environmental preservation.