Google is continuing its Change the Game initiative, geared at empowering women in the mobile gaming industry, through the co-sponsorship of a new contest it calls the Change the Game Design Challenge. The new challenge goes beyond the parameters laid out by that initial effort by centering around the upcoming generation of content creators. More directly, the goal is to entice teenagers who might aspire to be game makers to show off their vision of the industry’s future. To that end, those who are interested and are between the ages of 13 and 18 are invited to – with permission of a legal guardian – fill out a form describing their idea for a game to the contest. That includes uploads of any sketches, wire frames, or other details in the form of .jpg or .pdf files, as well as a 100-word statement about why they are passionate about games or what changes they want to see in the industry. The contest runs until 5 pm PST on May 16.
In the meantime, the prizes on offer match up neatly with the overall purpose of the Change the Game initiative. The participant who comes out on top will win a VIP trip to L.A. for this year’s E3 event celebrating the women in the industry. They’ll also get a tour of Google’s local office and a scholarship to Girls Make Games Summer Camp. Perhaps best of all, the grand prize also includes a $15,000 technology contribution to their own school and a $10,000 college scholarship. Finally, they’ll win an unspecified Android tablet. Four other contestants, meanwhile, will be given the same, with the exception of the college scholarship and school donation – which are reserved for the grand prize winner.
With that said, Google’s Play department is hardly alone in this endeavor. The search giant has teamed up with co-sponsors including Girls Make Games and the ESA Foundation to make this portion of the Change the Game initiative possible. In any case, this represents a very real opportunity to get a head start in the mobile gaming and conventional gaming industries. So anybody interested may want to head over to the contest page via the button below to get entered.