Climate Warriors
- Brand
- NRMA Insurance
- Year
- 2021
- Objective
- Awareness
- Industry
- Finance
- Mechanic
- Simulation & Strategy
- Platform
- In-Game
- Agency
- Thinkerbell
Objective
After the 2019/20 "Black Summer" fires — the worst in Australian history — NRMA Insurance wanted to act on the cause of its claims, not just pay out after the damage was done. Australian schools had no consistent way to teach bushfire preparedness, and adult attitudes weren't shifting either, so the insurer, whose brand promise centers on the word "Help," decided to reach the next generation instead. The goal was to turn disaster-readiness training into something kids would actually want to play, and get it into classrooms.
Solution
Players load into a custom-built Australian coastal town inside Minecraft — beach, footy field, fish-and-chip shop, emergency control center — on their own device, alone. The session runs in three stages: first they prepare, fireproofing a house and yard against an approaching blaze; then they act during the fire itself, working through tasks modeled on real steps firefighters took during the 2009 Black Saturday disaster; finally they rebuild the town once the fire has passed. Local wildlife, including koala mascot Arlo, populates the map as players move between objectives. A full playthrough takes roughly 30–45 minutes and needs no teacher intervention once it starts, closing out when the town is repaired.
Results
The map drew over 500,000 downloads in its first week — equivalent to 26% of Australia's primary-school population — and 196,637 people watched local gamers stream it during launch week. Media coverage, including ABC and other broadcasters, reached more than a third of Australian households, across 46 news pieces. Total downloads have since climbed to over 6.7 million, and the map has been approved as part of the Australian school curriculum, with a 4.3/5 average from 69,210+ ratings on Minecraft Marketplace.
- 1
The player enters solo as the sole inhabitant of a custom-built Australian coastal town — beach, footy oval, fish-and-chip shop, a mission control center, emergency-service vehicles, an NRMA helicopter, and roaming wildlife including kangaroos, a cockatoo, a magpie, and a koala named Arlo. A single session runs about 30–45 minutes across three phases: preparation, fire, and recovery.
- 2
In the preparation phase, the player reads a bushfire danger rating report to gauge how severe the day's risk is, then clears vegetation growing too close to houses so fire cannot spread from bush to building.
- 3
The player tests building materials for resistance to extreme heat and fits the property with materials matched to its fire zone, seeing directly which construction survives and which doesn't.
- 4
The player installs rooftop sprinklers to counter ember attack, the mechanic by which fire jumps onto homes.
- 5
The player drafts a household evacuation plan, setting a route and sequence of actions for when the fire arrives.
- 6
In the fire phase, the player joins the town's emergency response from mission control, then takes the controls of an NRMA helicopter to run an aerial rescue mission.
- 7
The player rescues animals, including brand mascot koala Arlo, from threatened areas, with the task structured so this can be done without putting the player's own character at risk.
- 8
In the recovery phase, the player plants trees to restore the land the fire has burned.
- 9
A companion classroom worksheet and lesson plan has students name fire-resistant building materials, list three actions that protect a home before a fire, and discuss what to do before, during, and after the emergency.
