Jiwe Community Game Jam 2025 - Roundup
Next Stop: Fak’ugesi Awards
NAIROBI, KENYA — June 10, 2025
After two months of workshops, community labs, and digital storytelling, the Jiwe Community Game Jam concluded in a thrilling 48-hour marathon that brought together 39 participants across four African countries, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Ivory Coast.
NAIROBI, KENYA — June 10, 2025
After two months of workshops, community labs, and digital storytelling, the Jiwe Community Game Jam concluded in a thrilling 48-hour marathon that brought together 39 participants across four African countries—Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, and Ivory Coast.
Hosted at the Nairobi Game Development Center, the game jam was the creative culmination of a continent-wide effort to foster narrative-driven and impactful games. This year’s themes challenged creators to develop prototypes under one of three categories: Music-Driven Games, Games Against Slavery, and Hyper-Casual Web Games. We identified partners such as Weza Interactive, Mekan Games, SOAS, and BIEA who are committed to supporting and incubating new games based on these themes, affirming the value of the categories we chose. These categories also reflect people, roles, spaces, and histories in ways that are both engaging and meaningful. They capture the multidimensional nature of lived experiences, an essential foundation for creating fun, authentic and impactful game worlds.
PHOTO: Friday Fireside Chat and Cosplay Evening, led by ArtLaw Kenya and Weza Interactive, supported by Barbah Games
Photo: Cosplayer Victoria Rotich and Jame Ahere
The Friday kickoff event was headlined by Stella Mwangi and Eyram Tawia, both celebrated for their work on Valorant, in a fireside chat that explored African representation in global games. The evening also featured an Afrofuturist cosplay party, drawing inspiration from local titles like Riziki and Usawa.
The Friday fireside chat brought together global and African creative powerhouses Stella Mwangi and Eyram Tawia for a candid and inspiring conversation on African representation in games, particularly through their work on Valorant.
Stella shared her journey from the music industry to composing for one of the world’s biggest games, emphasizing the importance of strong portfolios, strategic networks, and understanding contracts especially around ownership, pricing, and red flags in global collaborations.
She urged African creators to protect their IP and explore tools for registration while highlighting how being African can be both a challenge and an advantage in creative negotiations.
Eyram, creative consultant for the character of Astra in Valorant, discussed how his narrative consultancy helped shape the Ghanaian agent's story, advocating for cultural authenticity while navigating global expectations.
He provided practical advice on protecting creative input, negotiating fair agreements, and ensuring ethical representation. Both speakers emphasized that African creators must position themselves with confidence, prepare strong creative decks, and engage global platforms with clarity about their value and rights. The evening closed with a vibrant Afrofuturist cosplay party, featuring characters from Riziki and Usawa.
Photo:Newton Kiogora preparing for the game jam at NGDC
Saturday morning kicked off the 48 hr jam with different studios giving a deep dive into each theme that they focus on in their studio.
Game Jam Themes:
Theme 1: Sound in Games (led by Weza Interactive)
- Mechanics tied to rhythm, audio-driven storytelling, adaptive sound design, sound-driven games designed for accessibility or the visually impaired
Theme 2: Hyper Casual Games (led by Mekan Games)
- Addictive, easy-to-play, high-retention mechanics
Theme 3: Anti-Slavery Games (led by Jiwe Games)
- Narrative-driven, historically grounded or speculative games dealing with liberation, agency, and resistance
Play, Test, React
Saturday’s playtesting session, led by Game Tribe, offered the community and streamers a chance to test new African-made games in real time. Four standout titles received especially strong reactions:
Playtester reactions were streamed live across social media platforms, giving developers real-time feedback from gamers and creators alike.
The games playtested shared a few key qualities: strong emotional storytelling, rooted cultural themes, and simple but meaningful mechanics that created a fun interaction and in some cases encouraged player reflection. Many of the games drew on local histories, languages, or visual styles, which gave players a sense of familiarity.
Playtesting these types of games is crucial; it gives creators immediate feedback on how their stories and mechanics resonate with what’s working, what needs refinement, and where players feel most immersed. For the broader creative ecosystem, this fosters a pipeline of confident African game designers who are telling their own stories, designing for fun or impact, and building skills that contribute to a more diverse and inclusive global games industry.
Photo: Popular Gamers Faith Dororthy (Uganda) and Brian the Beast (Kenya) Playtest Yaziid Konate’s Game Kisai (Burkina Faso)
PHOTO: Saturday testing lounge with streamers and jam participants during gameplay demos led by Fred Munga from Game Tribe
After Saturday's activities, Sunday continued with focused development and final polish. The game jam came to a close at 4:00 PM, when participants pitched and showcased their demos to a panel of judges: Jay Shapiro, George Ahere, Evans Kiragu, and Dr. Marie Rodet. The event was live on Discord, allowing all participants to join and present their work. Games were evaluated across six criteria: originality (10), graphics (5), audio (5), adherence to theme (10), creativity (10), and mechanics (10). This balanced scoring system ensured that both creative vision and technical execution were recognized in the final judging.
Jiwe Game Jam 2025 – Winners Recap
Music-Driven Games
Winner: Dance na Mimi by Calvin Lichungu
Special Mention: Drumatic by Ian Okinda – for its rhythmic gameplay and innovation
Games Against Slavery
Winner: Hakuna Tsana by Jazzy and Chris – a compelling blend of history and game design
Hyper-Casual Web Games
Winner: Protect the Village by Steve and Brad – lauded for its polish and replayability
PHOTO: Sunday's closing ceremony
All winning teams receive entry into a 3-month incubation at a top African game studio, mentorship, workspace (Nairobi-based winners), publishing support via Gara Store, and fast-tracked access to the SpielFabrique and Voodoo Mobile Pioneers programs.
And the journey continues — these standout prototypes are now being submitted for consideration at the prestigious Fak’ugesi Awards, where Africa’s top digital creators will be recognized later this year.
Building the African Game Ecosystem
Throughout the program, teams received guidance from leading African studios and experts who helped shape the jam’s themes and energy. The full initiative was made possible thanks to an inspiring collective of partners:
Partners:
Nairobi Game Development Center, Leti Arts, Africa Comicade, Weza Interactive Entertainment, Barbah Games, Tshimologong Digital Innovation Precinct, Kayfo Game Studio, Mekan Games, Gara, SOAS University of London, Afrique Créative, Unity, and the British Institute in Eastern Africa.
Virtual Space Experience: Jiwe 3D World on Spatial
“This wasn’t just a game jam—it was a cultural lab for African creativity and collaboration,” said Max Musau, lead organizer and founder of Jiwe Community.
Explore the games, follow the developers, and support the rise of a new generation of African game creators at jiwe.io
