It blends interactive gameplay with history to spark conversation about the legacies of slavery, aiming to combat the dominant Western narrative of the abolition of slavery. The game is designed to be used alongside learning resources to highlight the importance of narrative and legacy, encouraging allyship and resistance.
As technology becomes further intertwined with day-to-day life, USAWA introduces a new way to teach difficult subjects through interactive learning. The game tackles themes that are often overlooked or minimized, challenging dominant Western narratives on slavery. Through Afro-futuristic world-building and creative aesthetics, the game presents recent histories in an engaging format. Interactive gameplay allows players to immerse themselves in the story, fostering empathy as they follow the protagonist uncovering the legacy of slavery on a new planet and working to confront discrimination.
USAWA addresses the underrepresentation of African resistance against slavery within school curricula. It raises awareness about historical injustices and engages young learners in critical discussions through a narrative that promotes empathy and resilience.
Set in the near future, the game reflects the lived experiences of communities still affected by the legacies of slavery in Africa. Grounded in extensive scholarly research on West African slavery, USAWA empowers students to stand against all forms of discrimination, not only those rooted in slavery but across broader social contexts.
USAWA AI allows students to engage in meaningful dialogue with an AI avatar representing the lived experiences of child labour victims, informed by testimonies and interviews from West Africa. This immersive experience combines real narratives with interactive engagement, providing an accessible and empathetic approach to exploring complex social issues. Through guided conversation, the AI enables users to ask questions, reflect critically, and deepen their understanding of both historical and contemporary forms of slavery.
USAWA AI challenges conventional narratives by emphasizing that slavery extends far beyond the transatlantic slave trade. It highlights modern forms such as economic exploitation and domestic servitude, revealing the varied and persistent ways slavery manifests today. Through active engagement, students are encouraged to recognize the subtle, systemic forces that fuel inequality and exploitation. By blending interactive learning with authentic stories, USAWA AI offers a powerful lens on the enduring legacies of slavery today.
USAWA is an Afrofuturistic game that immerses players in a journey that bridges the histories of resistance to slavery with the urgent choices of a near future. Rooted in true narratives of both past and present, the evolving storyline unfolds in environments shaped by the real lived experiences of those who endured slavery. By projecting these realities forward, USAWA challenges players to confront the risks of repeating history and inspires awareness, action, and generational change.
Key themes explored in the lore include resilience, justice, community, historical agency, and the continuous fight against oppression across time. Through the player’s journey, USAWA reinforces the message that history is not passive. It is shaped by individuals and communities who resist injustice.
In USAWA, names aren’t chosen at random. They’re meant to carry real history. The title Usawa, meaning “equality” in Swahili, links the game to contemporary West African anti-slavery activism, where similar terms affirm that all people are equal. It signals that USAWA’s world is connected to ongoing struggles for justice, not just a far-off sci-fi future.
Within the story:
Planet Djambour where the player originates, is a world where slavery no longer exists. Its name comes from Wolof (spoken in Senegal) and originally meant “free peasant.” During the colonial conquest of the West African interior, French forces, many of them Senegalese soldiers, used this term to describe communities of formerly enslaved people who escaped and established “liberty villages”.
Planet Horon, by contrast, is a world where slavery has survived. Horon comes from Bamanankan (spoken in southern Mali) and means “noble”. Historically, it referred to freeborn social groups (the ruling class) whose status stood in sharp contrast to those enslaved. These identities and hierarchies remain influential in parts of West Africa today, shaped by the region’s long history of slavery.
Together, these names carry layers of meaning: the weight of old hierarchies, the fight for freedom, and the ongoing push for equality. They let USAWA gesture toward West Africa’s complex past without tying the story to any single real-world group or lineage.
USAWA’s worldbuilding is deeply rooted in Afro-futurism, merging extensive historical research with imaginative futures to reframe how slavery and its legacies are understood. The project began in Mali, where villagers, developers, and artists across Africa co-created early concepts during a groundbreaking design workshop. Guided by oral histories, lived experience, and academic research, fifty developers from seven African countries collaborated to build a culturally grounded yet forward-facing universe.
From this process emerged a unique anti-slavery Afro-futurist game. Players arrive on the planet Horon, only to discover that the inequalities and injustices of slavery have evolved into futuristic forms. Through exploration, dialogue, and ethical choices, learners confront the enduring legacies of oppression while imagining new pathways to justice and resilience.
Additional lore explores the origins and meanings behind the planets, the etymology of names, and the broader universe. The futuristic setting allows the game to draw parallels between past, present, and potential futures, including speculative ideas like intergalactic slave trades, showing how exploitation persists when systems go unchallenged.
You are one of the heroes of this story, determined to support the people of Horon in their struggle against injustice.
A dedicated teacher whose moral strength drives him to challenge the injustices he witnesses on Horon.
A compassionate but fierce advocate for human rights, always supporting your journey.
Leader of the Noble Children — entitled and privileged, representing the elite’s prejudice.
A courageous woman with ascribed slave status who openly challenges injustice.
A proud noble who respects no one but himself, embodying the arrogance of the ruling class.
Your first true friend on Horon, sharing the struggles of his community under slavery.
A wise elder who carries deep knowledge of Horon’s long history of resistance.
A knowledgeable teacher whose silence about slavery exposes the dangers of neutrality.
Your older brother — aware, driven, and committed to fighting for justice.
The chief’s son — playful and carefree, but eventually an unexpected ally.
The chief of Horon, valuing stability over progress — persuading him will be difficult.
Women's representative and a passionate advocate for equality and justice.
A dedicated youth representative determined to shape a future free from slavery.
USAWA’s historical and cultural relevance is deeply rooted in Dr Marie Rodet’s 15+ years of research on slavery and resistance in Mali and wider West Africa. Her work highlights how enslaved and formerly enslaved communities were active agents of change who resisted, negotiated and reshaped their social worlds. By recovering oral histories, local archives and community memory, this research disrupts dominant Eurocentric narratives that often frame slavery primarily through the lens of abolition by European powers.
West Africa experienced long histories of internal slavery that were central to political, social and economic life across the region. Enslavement often resulted from warfare, debt or raids, and enslaved people were key to agriculture, artisanal production and the military. Resistance was a constant feature, ranging from flight and sabotage to the creation of autonomous communities. This complexity shows slavery in West Africa was neither marginal nor static, but deeply embedded in local power structures and continually shaped by resilience and negotiation.
The game makes visible marginalised voices to a wider audience, ensuring that stories of resilience, agency and survival are preserved and shared. Socially, it challenges stereotypes, enabling learners to understand slavery as a global system with enduring legacies that still shape inequalities today. USAWA translates this into an educational tool that foregrounds justice, resilience and community memory, fostering empathy, critical thinking and intercultural understanding in diverse classrooms.
USAWA directly addresses descent-based slavery to raise awareness about its legacies and contemporary implications. Through immersive storytelling and AI-guided avatars, the game empowers students to engage with narratives rooted in the lived experiences of communities affected by this form of slavery. By exploring the historical, social and cultural context of descent-based slavery, USAWA educates players on the structural violence that perpetuates these systems and encourages reflection on how societal inequalities continue to affect descendants of enslaved people today. This approach helps break the cycle of stigma and ignorance, while also fostering positive social change and deeper understanding of the complexities surrounding modern slavery.
Descent-based slavery in West Africa refers to a system where individuals are born into slavery because their ancestors were enslaved, with the status passed down—typically through the maternal line. This form of slavery is deeply entrenched in many communities, particularly in the Sahel region, where it continues to affect millions.
It often stems from historical practices where people captured during war, refugees, outsiders or those in debt were ascribed “slave status” upon settling in new communities. Today, this system remains prevalent across Mali, Niger, Mauritania, Senegal and Sudan. Victims face human rights violations, including forced labor, denial of basic services and exclusion from citizenship rights such as education and healthcare. Even after escaping, descendants of enslaved individuals often remain marginalized, carrying the stigma of their inherited status.
Understanding descent-based slavery is essential to understanding modern slavery in West Africa, where historical power dynamics continue to fuel exploitation. These practices, often invisible to outsiders, persist through complex social, economic and political coercion, leaving victims vulnerable to further abuse and modern forms of slavery such as human trafficking.
What is often misunderstood is that descent-based slavery sustains modern slavery. The normalization of descent-based slavery creates a continuum of violence—its trivialization enables everyday exploitation and reinforces the social acceptance of economic inequality.
In a global political climate grappling with the legacies of colonialism, systemic racism and inequality, USAWA responds to the need for a more honest and comprehensive approach to teaching history. It supports the growing demand for educational resources that are not only academically rigorous but also socially responsible. By addressing the deep-rooted issues tied to slavery and historical oppression, USAWA contributes to a larger movement in education aimed at creating a more inclusive, informed and just society.
Globally, schools and institutions are under increasing pressure to diversify curricula, especially when addressing sensitive histories such as slavery, colonialism and human rights abuses. Many educational systems continue to rely on traditional, Eurocentric narratives that fail to represent marginalized voices. As learning environments move toward inclusivity and cultural relevance, USAWA provides a powerful solution by educating students through diverse and culturally grounded perspectives. It enables learners to explore difficult histories in both accessible and empathetic ways.
With global movements like Black Lives Matter and widespread calls for racial justice, societies are increasingly acknowledging how historical oppression shapes the present. USAWA offers a lens through which learners can examine the enduring legacies of slavery, not through the dominant Western abolition narrative, but through the lived experiences of communities affected by exploitation. By centering resistance, resilience and agency, the game empowers students to understand the connections between past injustices, modern inequalities and the role they can play in preventing future harm.
In an era marked by political polarization and intense debates around identity, race and national memory, educating young people on the complexities of human rights is more urgent than ever. USAWA and USAWA AI foster empathy by guiding students through immersive experiences where they engage directly with the stories of enslaved people and their descendants. This allows learners to reflect on how historical exploitation continues to manifest in modern societies and to consider their own role in advancing justice and equality.
In a world increasingly focused on confronting its past to create a better future, USAWA's impact is both timely and necessary, bringing complex historical narratives to life in a way that empowers students to understand, engage with, and challenge these legacies.
USAWA seeks to make difficult historical topics like slavery more engaging and accessible, helping youth connect emotionally and intellectually with the material. It encourages critical reflection on social justice and power dynamics.
By centering narratives from African and historically marginalized communities, USAWA empowers youth to recognize and appreciate the strength, resilience, and contributions of these groups, which are often overlooked in traditional histories.
By raising awareness of the ongoing impacts of historical systems like descent-based slavery, USAWA aims to shift perspectives and challenge the normalization of exploitation, encouraging a new generation to advocate for equality and human rights.
“I have been playing the game and really enjoying it. I can definitely see how it will be a valuable tool for teachers.”
Hear directly from the minds behind USAWA. Our developers share their experiences, challenges, and creative process while building a game that combines history, culture, and interactive gameplay.
“Creating USAWA has been an incredible journey. We aimed to merge engaging gameplay with real historical narratives to foster empathy and understanding.”
“I really enjoyed making this game and I was very fortunate to work with a very talented group of people. With each of us coming from different parts of the world, I feel like everybody was able to bring something unique, and that mix of creativity resulted in something I hope you will enjoy!”
“I wanted players to feel the impact of slavery through the graphic design, and to encourage…”
Meet the talented team behind USAWA. Each member contributes their unique expertise to bring history and interactive learning to life.
Narrative Lead and Project Head
Historian of Africa at SOAS, University of London. Her work bridges history, digital humanities, and public scholarship, with a focus on accessible, inclusive, and ethically grounded digital and AI-informed research and teaching.
Game Designer
Technology researcher and creative technologist based in Kenya, and founder of Jiwe Studio and Jiwe IO. His work bridges game design, immersive storytelling, and ethical AI, with a focus on African histories, community co-creation, and accessible digital platforms for education, culture, and creative economies.
Game Developer
Art Designer
Project Assistant
Master’s student at Sciences Po Paris in Human Rights and Humanitarian Action and a graduate from SOAS, University of London. As a project assistant on USAWA, Garance contributed to the coordination and communication of the game.
Head of Research - Mali
project assistant - Mali
project assistant - Mali
3D Artist
Animation
Project Assistant