Logo for media literacy video game Culture Overlord, a game about healthy relationships. 2022 Games for Change Awards 'Best Learning Game' nominee, 2021 GEE Learning Games Award finalist, 2020 Life Love Game Design Challenge winning game.

We will control the cultural items that appear in Dan's life. And this will determine Dan's decisions and actions.
What should   will you make Dan do today?

Culture Overlord video game logo

About Culture Overlord

Culture Overlord is a media literacy video game developed by Lucas Vially presented by the Gaming Against Violence program and produced by the nonprofit organization Jennifer Ann's Group. It was a 2022 Games for Change Awards "Best Learning Game" nominee, a 2021 James Paul Gee Learning Games Award finalist, and is the winning game of the 2020 Life.Love. Game Design Challenge. Culture Overlord was created for the Gaming Against Violence program which focuses on the use of games for violence prevention. Published by Life Love Publishing.

This prosocial video game explores media and cultural impacts on the attitudes and beliefs that young people have regarding healthy dating relationships. For information and resources about Media Literacy and Healthy Dating Relationships please see below.

Artist Statement

"Making a game is quite a challenge. Making a game to adequately teach something is even more difficult. The topic of culture and its influence on our daily lives is complex and important. I hope my game manages to effectively introduce players to the subject."

- Lucas Vially, Creator of Culture Overlord

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The theme for the 2024 competition is connectedness. The game design challenge will launch February 2024. Follow the Connectedness games website for more details.

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Latest: Resilience Games

The theme for the 15th Annual Life.Love. Game Design Challenge was resilience. Two of the winning resilience games are now available to play in your browser: One New Message and Unearth.

Culture Overlord
available through these Marketplaces

Download the video game Culture Overlord
Download the video game Culture Overlord

Download the media literacy game Culture Overlord (v1.1.2)(WIN/MAC/LINUX)
Media literacy game Culture Overlord at Amazon Appstore

Development Produced by Published by ESRB Rating Price Ads In-App Purchases
Lucas Vially Jennifer Ann's Group Life Love Publishing E (Everyone) Free None None

Media Literacy

An important goal of Culture Overlord is to encourage players, especially young people, to consider the impact of movies, books, songs, games, websites, and more. More specifically, what attitudes and beliefs are they acquiring from popular media? In their Parent's Guide to Media Literacy The National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) asks parents "where do children get their beliefs?" and "what messages are they receiving?"[1]

Similarly the Center for Media Literacy (CML) conducts research to study how media impacts students in the areas of "violence, nutrition, body image, and sexuality."[2] Media Smarts in Canada encourages educators to engage students about media in the classroom in order to "become active, enaged media consumers" and that the need for this media literacy education "needs to start at the very early stages of learning."[3]

According to common sense media [4], encouraging early education in media literacy is intended to help young people:

  1. learn to think critically
  2. become a smart consumer of products and information
  3. recognize point of view
  4. create media responsibly
  5. identify the role of media in our culture
  6. understand the author's goal

Unfortunately media literacy is not taught in classrooms very often. According to Media Literacy now, fewer than one-third of states include media literacy in their education standards.[6] Further, the media literacy curricula include for-profit corporations that don't sufficiently consider the roles played by "power dynamics, profit motives, or their own internal beliefs and biases."[7]

Select Media Literacy Resources

Healthy Dating Relationships

The primary goal of Culture Overlord is to prevent abusive dating relationships, in particular, teen dating violence. The aim is to do this through the promotion of healthy dating relationship ideals and attitudes for adolescents. Media literacy is important to achieve this goal because young people's attitudes and beliefs regarding healthy relationships and gender norms are heavily informed by the media to which they are exposed.

The Making Caring Common project's report The Talk: How Adults Can Promote Young People's Healthy Relationships and Prevent Misogyny and Sexual Harassment reveals that young people are tired of the media's overhyped focus on "hooking up" and would prefer to instead learn from their parents and their schools about healthy relationships. Some of the key findings from their report:

  • ► 70% of the 18 to 25-year-olds surveyed would have liked more information from their parents about emotional aspects of romantic relationships
  • ► 65% of those surveyed would have liked more guidance at school about emotional aspects of romantic relationships
  • ► 76% of respondents never had a conversation with their parents about how to avoid sexually harassing others
  • ► 32% of male and 22% of female respondents thought men should be dominant in romantic relationships
  • ► 14% of males and 10% of females thought women should be dominant in romantic relationships
  • ► 57% of responsdents never spoke with their parents about the “importance of not having sex with someone who is too intoxicated or impaired to make a decision about sex”

Jennifer Ann's Group, a nonprofit charity focused on teen dating violence prevention, uses prosocial video games in an effort to engage and educate young people about healthy relationships and related topics. Their program, Gaming Against Violence, has been producing, publishing, and researching video games intentionally designed to assist adolescents about a variety of topics including consent, healthy relationships, and teen dating violence prevention since 2008.

Healthy Dating Relationship Resources


Culture Overlord
Game Credits

Game Design

Lucas Vially

Art and Programming

Lucas Vially

Producer

Jennifer Ann's Group

Advisory Board

Katherine Brehm, Ph.D. - Clinical Psychologist
Myrna Deckert, Paso Del Norte Health Foundation
Elizabeth L. Richeson, Ph.D., MS PsyPharm - Clinical Psychologist
Paul Richeson, LCSW - Marriage and Family Counselor
Blake Riddell, Psy.D. - Clinical Psychologist

Game Reviewers

Leigh Alexander
Harley Baldwin
Maria Burns Ortiz
Simon Carless
Brian Crecente
Drew Crecente, JD
Sabrina Culyba
Dr. Pat DeLeon
Mark DeLoura
Dr. Ruud Jacobs
Keen Seong Liew
Stephanie Mathes
Dr. Brooke Morrill
Dr. Elizabeth L. Richeson
Jo Sharpen
Peter Willington

Testing & Diverse Help

Vincent Vially
Noé Sultani
Péter György Szabó
Mil Beges
Sandro Ferrand
Stephanie Mathes

Game Soundtrack

f-r-a-g-i-l-e
Kevin Mac Leod
Monplaisir
Komiku
JNGS
axtoncrolley
andrewkn

Sponsors

The Estate of Dr. Angela E. Ladogana
Dr. David Wilbanks
Carefree Homes
Drew Crecente
Freeport McMoRan
Helen of Troy
Industrial Realty Group
Dr. Elizabeth L. Richeson
Paul Richeson
Schell Games
Stanlee & Jerry Rubin
Verlander Enterprises, Inc.

El Paso Electric Company
WestStar Bank
Dr. Katherine and Russell Brehm
Judge Linda Chew
Fox Auto Team
Tomas G. Marino, DMD
Peak Behavioral Health Services
Dr. Cynthia Rivera
Tropicana Homes
Dan, the easily influenced student from the video game Culture Overlord

Other Prosocial Video Games Produced by Jennifer Ann's Group

(many of our most current games can be found at jag.itch.io

Available now:

Game Development Topic(s) Browser Desktop Mobile Other  
ADRIFT Quinn Crossley
Andrew Connell
(USA)
Consent Play - Download ADRIFT on the App Store Parent Guide

Front
Back
ADRIFT, a game about consent
Another Chance Another Kind (Belgium) Teen Dating Violence - - Download Another Chance on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

- Another Chance, a game about teen dating violence
Crossing Boundaries Testudo Games (UK) Consent Play - Download Crossing Boundaries on the App Store Download Crossing Boundaries on Amazon Appstore - Crossing Boundaries, a game about consent
Culture Overlord Lucas Vially (France) Healthy Relationships, Media Literacy - Download (WIN/MAC/LINUX) Download Culture Overlord on Amazon Appstore Website Culture Overlord, a game about media's impact on healthy relationships
Grace's Diary GP Touch (Thailand) Bystander Awareness, Teen Dating Violence Play Download (WIN) Download Grace's Diary on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

- Grace's Diary, a game about bystander awareness and teen dating violence prevention
The Guardian 99UNO (Argentina) Teen Dating Violence - - Download The Guardian on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

- Guardian, a game about teen dating violence prevention
HONEYMOON Sandra Lara Castillo, SNDR (UK) Healthy Relationships Play - Download HONEYMOON on the App Store Download HONEYMOON on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

Website and Lesson Plans HONEYMOON, a game about healthy relationships
How to Blorrble-Blobble Jared Sain (USA) Consent Play - - - How to Blorrble-Blobble, a game about consent
Lamplight Hollow Luciano Sgarbi (England) Gaslighting Play - - - Lamplight Hollow, a game about gaslighting
Leaving Testudo Games (UK) Teen Dating Violence - - Download Leaving on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

- Leaving, a game about teen dating violence
LED Gaslight Naomi Norbez (USA) Gaslighting Play - - - LED Gaslight, a game about gaslighting
Love in the Dumpster Another Kind (Belgium) Teen Dating Violence Play -

Google Play

- Love in the Dumpster, a game about teen dating violence
Rispek Danis Jared Sain (USA) Consent, Healthy Relationships - -

Google Play

Website Rispek Danis, a game about consent and healthy relationships for ni-Vanuatu youth
The Room Beneath the Rafters Luciano Sgarbi (England) Teen Dating Violence Play - Download The Room Beneath the Rafters on the App Store - The Room Beneath the Rafters, a game about teen dating violence
Sea of Roses Crescent Tea Studios (Portugal) Culture, Healthy Relationships Play Download Sea of Roses on Steam Sea of Roses on itch.io Sea of Roses on GameJolt - Website Sea of Roses, a game about culture and healthy relationships
Stuck in a Dark Place Another Kind (Belgium) Consent Play - Download Stuck in a Dark Place on the App Store Download Stuck in a Dark Place on Amazon Appstore

Google Play

- Stuck in a Dark Place, a game about consent

Still to come:

  • All Around Us (Culture) Developed by Sam Schneider (USA)
  • Break Free (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Anindya Mathur (India)
  • CSPS (Consent) Developed by Berkley Staite (USA)
  • Citizen Witch (Bystander Awareness) Developed by Lucas Vially (France)
  • Courage in Silent Places (Culture) Developed by Naomi Norbez (USA)
  • Dating Dangers 1.0 (Teen Dating Violence)
  • A Decision of Paramount Importance (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Thomas Liu (USA)
  • Destination: Love (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Toronja Concepts (Mexico)
  • Escape Your Boyfriend's room (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Goyco Design Games (USA)
  • Finding Jane (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Another Kind (Belgium)
  • Heart's Keep (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Ben Pence (USA)
  • Incoming Messages (Culture) Developed by Isaac Wirth (USA)
  • Janie's Sketchbook (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by GPTouch (Thailand)
  • Jellia's Friends (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Batty Media (USA)
  • Knowledge can be your bulletproof vest (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Another Kind (Belgium)
  • Last Shred of Reality (Gaslighting) Developed by Another Kind (Belgium)
  • Let's Do It (Culture) Developed by Justin Van (USA)
  • Moving On (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Gamers of Action (USA)
  • Power and Control (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Jared Sain (USA)
  • P.S. Be Brave (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by 99UNO (Argentina)
  • Scare Me Away (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Brian Crick (USA)
  • A Thousand Cuts (Consent | Culture) Developed by Elizabeth Ballou (USA)
  • Untitled (2009) (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Jared Sain (USA)
  • Valentine's Day (Culture) Developed by Jess Erion (USA)
  • A Walk in the Park (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Jared Sain (USA)
  • Would You Like Some Cake? (Consent) Developed by Kevin Chao (USA)
  • Your Face (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Momoexe (USA)
  • Your Space (Teen Dating Violence) Developed by Paul McGee, Sam Gross, Lyndsey Moulds, Ross McWilliam, kayfaraday (Ireland)

Teen Dating Violence Prevention Resources