Big Green Help from Nickolodeon

The Big Green Help Global Challenge will be available for download starting Sunday, and we were able to grab a sneak peek.

In an effort to educate and encourage action, Nickelodeon is set to release what could be the first ever online multiplayer video game that deals with environmental issues. As a component of the broader Big Green Help initiative, the game will tie together an overall theme that the company launched on Earth Day last April.

The game itself is impressive. A small download onto your PC or Mac gives you a fully 3D third-person-shooter where you must help "green" the last three pollution-free cities on the planet. This is done so by eliminating the carbon-producing enemies of the game such as "Guzzlor," a gas-guzzling tractor-trailer, "Bulb Bot," an energy-wasting light bulb monster, and "Carbon Creeper," a giant scorpion of unrecycled trash. Each villain is given a health point count, very similar to how many RPG video games are set up.

Everyone who wants to play the game must take a pledge to reduce their carbon footprint. With that pledge comes a virtual checklist of changes that can be made such as "travelling by foot, bike, etc., instead of by car for four miles each week." At the end of every gaming session, players can track their progress and see how they are making an impact. Keep reading for more on the title including a gameplay video.

Gamers can choose to play through nine levels as one of four Nicktoon characters--SpongeBob SquarePants; Back at the Barnyard's Otis; The Fairly OddParent's Timmy Turner; and Avatar's Aang--all of which are beautifully rendered in 3D. You'll be able to join in with other players online, cooperatively taking on the challenge as a team. The game controls just like any third-person title you've seen before, allowing for easy pick-up-and-play.

We really like the idea of using a video game to help raise awareness about global environmental issues affecting our world. The most important factor in the movement toward a cleaner planet is undoubtedly education, and, hopefully, The Big Green Help Global Challenge will be able to convey that message to the population that needs it the most--our youth.

Check back here tomorrow for the direct link to download The Big Green Help Global Challenge.

Nickelodeon's Big Green Help

Nickelodeon's Big Green Help starts today, Sunday, December 14, 2008. The big Green to help has been raising kids awareness of the state of the environment or years, emphasizing energy conservation and positive attitude.

Nickelodeon is launching another chapter in their environmentally friendly challenge by opening their aid to help website or the online game (Nick.com/BigGreenHelp).

Because of the enormous popularity of online gaming around the world, this online multiplayer kids again uses social media as a tool in trying to help educate about global environmental concerns.

Kids can play as a miss cartoon characters such as SpongeBob, Timmy Turner, were grouped together with others as a team fighting opponents of planet greening in the right direction. The game is downloadable, and tries to keep players in the right frame of mind, as it navigates them to an online meter that asks for individual commitment in helping contribute to this pro-social initiative.

Nickelodeons Big Green Help is partnering with characters like Otis (Back at the Barnyard) or Aang (Avatar: the Last Airbender), users will work to defeat monsters like the Carbon Creeper, Waste Whirlwind or Guzzlor. Moving through nine game levels, kids will get tips about how to lower their carbon footprint. The multiplayer online green game will be available in more than 15 Nickelodeon markets, including: Italy, Germany, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Denmark, Sweden, Portugal, Spain, Indonesia, Mexico, Philippines, and Argentina, with additional countries to follow.

Nickelodeon, which is now in its 29th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films.