Huni Kuin: Beya Xinã Bena (New Times)

The final content production workshop with the Beya Xinã Bena collective was held in the village of Novo Natal, Kaxinawá Indigenous Land of the Jordão River, before the release of the definitive version of the game.

The project, initiated in 2014, features seven stories from the elders (shenipabu miyui), recreated in the Huni Kuin electronic game: Beya Xinã Bena (New Times). The game has been developed from the beginning in collaboration with the Beya Xinã Bena collective from the Indigenous Lands of the municipality of Jordão, Acre.

During the workshop, the Huni Kuin team from the three Indigenous Territories worked on creating and interpreting the game’s texts and dialogues, preparing and recording character voice acting, recreating the stories in audiovisual form, developing and revising the content in hãtxa kuĩ, watching films, discussing climate change, and experiencing the game in its most recent test version.

Among the stories in the game, based on Huni Kuin cosmology, are “Yube Nawa Aĩbu” (Enchanted Boa Woman), “Siriani” (Kene apprenticeship), “Kapa Yuxibu” (“Enchanted Coati”) and “Kapetawã” (Bridge-Crocodile).

The produced material is being implemented in the game by the Associação Povos da Terra – APOTI, in collaboration with The Philosophical School of Games studio.

More than 100 people were present, including about 30 members of the collective, such as the 92-year-old shaman Dua Busẽ, the shanen ibu Ozelia Sales (Bismani), leader of the Novo Natal village, and the coordinators Abel Sales (Ibã), Osvaldo Mateus (Isaka) and José Paixão (Bixku).

An assembly was also held to discuss the future distribution of the game and to develop a plan to leverage its revenue for the communities, primarily in terms of water infrastructure, solar energy, and communication for the villages.

Huni Kuin: Beya Xinã Bena (New Times) is the definitive version of the game, which began in 2014, and is scheduled for release in April 2026.