Colorado-based Lifetree Family has developed a game called "Buddy Quest" that is designed to teach children how to apply virtues in the real world. Now the company wants to make it available to the public.
In a press release published on PRWeb, "Buddy Quest" is designed for children between the ages of 6 and 11 to learn about and practice virtues in the real world. One of the game's creative leads, Jeff White, noted that it was part of a trend that combines mobile technology with real-life experiences.
"Virtues training isn't easy, even for over-achieving parents," White said. "We're building Buddy Quest with unique features that make learning fun and rewarding, while also helping moms and dads with an essential part of parenting."
According to Lifetree Family, children follow the adventures of more than 100 characters and "help them solve their problems using a variety of virtues such as responsibility, honesty, gratitude and kindness." The game also challenges them to "take what they're learning in the game and try it out in their everyday lives."
"Another unique feature of Buddy Quest is the Parent Portal, a part of the app that gives moms and dads an easy way to track their child's progress, chat with them about what they're experiencing, and watch them practice the virtues in real life," the company wrote.
Lifetree Family claimed that the game "will feature more than 130 high-quality characters that have been a key part of summertime vacation Bible school programs for the past 10 years."
"Every summer, more than 3 million children experience the VBS program, which gives us a great fan base to start with," White said. "That's a lot of families who already have some familiarity with the characters and their stories."
Brian Abbott, the leader behind the development for "Buddy Quest," observed that both parents and children have reacted positively to the game during its test phase.
"We've also got a great head start because of the quality of art, design, music, and other development features that we can use for the game," Abbott said.
Lifetree Family has set up a Kickstarter campaign to raise at least $30,000 to push the project through and is expected to last the entire month of June. The company elaborated on why it was necessary for them to fund the app on Kickstarter.
"We've discovered that creating game apps can be very expensive - especially developing some of the innovative features for Buddy Quest (features you won't find in other apps)," the company wrote. "We need a financial boost to make Buddy Quest a reality, as well as make it an even more sensational experience for kids and parents."
The company reassured its potential backers that "100 percent of the funds we raise will go straight into game development and creating/delivering the backer rewards." It has also hired legendary American voice actor Jess Harnell to provide the voice of Buzzly, the app's main character.
"He is known for being the voice of Wakko from Animaniacs, Ironhide from the Transformers films, Chilly in Doc McStuffins, and scores of other characters in Disney, Pixar, and Nickelodeon films and TV shows," Lifetree Family wrote of Harnell. "Our first studio session with Jess was a blast, and he is such a talented professional. People like Jess are helping to make this game a very high-quality experience."
If it is successful in securing funding, the "Buddy Quest" is scheduled to be launched sometime in fall 2015 and will be available both in iTunes and Google Play.
