'Choice: Texas' New Abortion Game Will Feature Five Different Women Characters

In light of the newly passed abortion bill in Texas, two women are developing a game centered on the struggles of women seeking abortion in the state.

The new abortion game called "Choice: Texas" is thought of and developed by Carly Kocurek and Allyson Whipple. Both Kocurek and Whipple are professors whose aim is to promote awareness and compassion.

In an interview with Persephone Magazine, the game creators revealed that "Choice: Texas" has been in the works since January but the recent legislative session in Texas somehow "energized" the project. Both Kocurek and Whipple are looking at a January 2014 release date for the abortion game.

"Choice: Texas" will be a free web-based game though the game creators are currently raising funds for its creation. The fundraising for the abortion game is held at IndieGoGo. Kocurek and Whipple are looking to raise $9,250 to be able to complete the game. With only 15 days left, the fundraising has achieved more than half of its goal at $7,810.

This "very serious game" will allow gamers to choose from five different women characters. Each of these characters is based on research using published accounts and testimonies as well as knowledge and experience gained from Whipple's volunteer work at Lilith fund, an organization that helps low-income women get funding for abortions.

According to Whipple, the characters will include the following:

"One will be a high school student not ready to be a mother; one will be a mother-to-be facing dangerous medical complications with her pregnancy. The other will be a married mother struggling to make ends meet and raise the children she already has."

Each character will be facing "obstacles" in the form of geography, money, time and transportation. The level of difficulty will vary depending on the character chosen and the "obstacles" facing her.

"Choice: Texas" has already been accepted into the Future and Reality of Gaming (FROG) 2013 Conference in Vienna. According to Kocurek, the peer reviewers of the FROG conference saw the abortion game fit with this year's "Context Matters" theme. Whipple told Persephone Magazine:

"To me, this game is centered around two things: awareness and empathy. Many people, including privileged pro-choice people, do not realize the extent to which people with less privilege struggle with geography, time, and money to obtain abortions... There are people who want to shame and demonize women, and I think that if they worked for a hotline like Lilith Fund, or otherwise interacted with women in impossible situations, I think some of them would change their minds."