Google Play started the “Change the Game” initiative back in December 2017 that aims to make mobile gaming for everyone and empower women to play and create mobile games. Each year, Google invites particiapants who are interested in the mobile gaming industry to design their own game and change the mobile gaming industry. Now, recently, the company started taking applications for the “Design Challenge 2020” contest, which falls under the aforementioned initiative.

To enter the competition, participants aged between 13-18 can submit a new idea for a mobile game along with a note stating why they are passionate about gaming and what change in the gaming industry would they like to see in the future. The contest will remain open for a span of 81 days, from May 11 to July 31 and participants can create their game during this time.

Now, in the previous year’s “Design Challenge 2019”, Google gave participants a chance to get $15,000 college scholarship and an additional $15,000 donation to develop technology in their schools or community centres. However, this year, the company added a new opportunity for the participants whose games will be selected, as schools remain closed due to the ongoing pandemic.

So, this year, the company is offering the winning participants the chance to “score cool swag” and attend four online workshops focussed on game development. These workshops are hosted by Girls Make Games (GMG), which is one of the “forward-thinking organisations” that partners with Google Play in this initiative.

In these online workshops, the participants will learn how to create “real playable games” by working with many experts in the gaming industry. After creating the game, the designer-participants will get the playable prototype of their own game to enjoy. Moreover, the participants who complete the entire course will get a completion certificate along with a new Chromebook.

So, if you think you have what it takes to be a game designer, you can submit your application from here.