It's not often that developers take on a humanitarian issue and use it to create a game - that is unless it involves "peace keeping" that require the death and destruction of millions of baddies.
That's why it's refreshing to see that the UN have created their very own game in the form of Food Force. Food Force puts you in the daunting position of dealing with a major crisis in the Indian Ocean, on the island of Sheylan. You're part of a UN team to step up the World Food Program’s presence there and help feed millions of hungry people. The first thing to note before you get going is that Food Force is a big download at 215MB so if you're thinking of giving it a whirl, start downloading it now. The file is in the form of a disk image which you must then copy to your hard drive.
You start of as a team rookies with six missions to complete. It doesn't seem you can progress beyond these six missions - I don't think you can become Kofi Anan for example - but as with all new jobs, you start at the bottom. Each mission requires you to deliver food to an area in crisis. The missions vary in task from Air Surveillance where you have to locate the hungry, creating some kind of balanced diet on your modest budget, air drops and finally, teaching the community how to farm for themselves.
Throughout Food Force, you are prompted by various assistants as to where to go and what to do to achieve your goals. Some are undeniably more fun than others - for example, Air Surveillance is considerably more fun that planning a food budget but throughout, the level of realism, graphics and playability are very good.
Food Force combines a good cause with a surprisingly involving, varied and challenging game. This is gaming with a wholesome side.
