Players must try to stay alive as they navigate a Sudanese refugee camp. Screenshot from darfurisdying.com

As I peered through the desiccated brush—hoping to make a mad dash to the water pump to bring back desperately needed nourishment to my family—I caught sight of yet another dreaded Janjaweed patrol. Damn, not again!

For the past week, my family had sent me into the desert along to forage for water, seemingly neglecting the fact that I, as their oldest son, would certainly be left for dead if the militia caught up with me. Nonetheless, fetching water, if slightly less desirable than burger flipping, was my duty; without water, we would surely perish. I continued about my duty, ever vigilant, ever watchful.

Finally, I stumbled back into the refugee camp, my home for the past week. The buildings were in shambles, the crops were sickly, and the spirits of the inhabitants were crushed like a flower under a boot. I went to water our sickly potatoes, and then…

My browser quits.

You see, I’m not actually a poor, starving refugee from Darfur at all. Instead, I’ve been playing MTV’s “Darfur is Dying” game, discovering from the comfort of my desk in Berry 3 exactly what it’s like to be poor, starving, and desperate. I’ve survived dozens of paramilitary attacks, cried with emaciated widows, and pleaded for help with the international community without even leaving my seat.

‘Darfur is Dying” certainly has a noble aim at heart, trying as it does to educate people about the disaster unfolding in Chad and Sudan using a comfortable, familiar medium.

However, it effectively dehumanizes the conflict as being, yes, no more than a game. There were some heartbreaking notes to be found in the game, but at the end I was more concerned about making it onto the leaderboard than I was about the welfare of Darfur’s refugees.

Another problematic issue with “Darfur” is that only people who are already interested in the Darfur conflict will play. It’s preaching to the choir. The only way to increase international awareness of the genocide is to make more people aware of the genocide. If MTV’s game isn’t reaching out to a new audience, then what is it accomplishing?

To solve the Darfur conflict, the world needs a way to publicize the crisis accurately, and more importantly, it needs to publicize it without being despairing or tacky. Does the Darfur game fit this framework? I’m not sure it does, but for now, it certainly can’t hurt.