After months of studious work, the Upemba National Park (UNP) made a spectacular entry into one of the most popular online video games “Hotel Hideaway” on Friday, October 28, 2023. The project was birthed from Forgotten Parks Foundation’s (FPF) belief that digital innovation has immense potential and offers opportunities that can help protect biodiversity. The aim of this entry was to bring biodiversity data into the gaming world, hence educating and introducing the park, its uniqueness and experience, to the gaming world.
The project was materialized in a partnership with Sovereign Nature Initiative (SNI) and Azerion gaming studio. SNI is a technology and ecology non-profit building a pipeline to connect ecological data to digital creatives. Azerion is the studio behind popular games like Hotel Hideaway and Habbo Hotel.
Through this collaboration, we are co-creating unique virtual space and digital items that players can purchase in Hotel Hideaway. Profits from these virtual in-game items will be donated to FPF for protecting the real-world ecosystems that inspired the collections. SNI's REAL Verification Portal will enable tracking the impact of these donations.
The first collection has been live since Friday, October 28, and the feedback has been positive as players are taken through an adventure inspired by our beloved Upemba National Park. The second collection will maximize on the current momentum as Upemba is becoming a reality in the collective memories of many from far and near.
The project falls under the overall ambition of establishing the infrastructure and the capacity to embrace new technologies that will accelerate and enhance our commitment to safeguarding the Upemba National Park in the DRC. We invite you to explore Hotel Hideaway, have fun while learning about our efforts to protect Upemba's precious biodiversity.
