Breshna.io is a barrier-breaking platform. It is a game maker platform that empowers a non-tech, non-gamer audience to create, share, and monetize their own video games with no code and at lightning speed. With Breshna, everyone can create snackable games for entertainment, educational, marketing, and training purposes, like Canva for video games. At its essence, Breshna is the Pashto word for lightning – and this lighting has struck the heart of the gaming industry.
“We’re breaking the time, skills, and cost barriers around making games,” says Mariam Nusrat, founder and CEO of Breshna.io, “Our mission is to empower the next 100 million people so they can tell their stories through video games.” This democratization of game creation allows teachers, students, small businesses, and social activists to transform their ideas into engaging games. Breshna.io’s no-code, click-and-choose interface provides templates for various game types, from runner games to puzzles to word games, all shareable via a simple URL.
Breshna.io’s platform is a testament to this vision of making game creation accessible to all. “On Breshna.io, we have templates that you can use to create Super Mario-like games where you’re catching even numbers and dodging odd numbers,” she explains. This innovative approach has garnered immense traction, with over 170,000 registered game makers creating over 150,000 video games with more than 5 million game clicks. Breshna’s raised $2.5 million from investors like Paris Hilton, Randi Zuckerberg, Lisa Carmen Wang, and Bill Ackman’s family office Table Management, and “a bunch of really exciting tech industry experts and celebrity investors.”
Breaking Barriers
Mariam’s journey to founding Breshna.io is a story of unexpected turns and bold innovation. Born and raised in Pakistan, Mariam’s path from an economist and education policy expert at the World Bank to the tech frontier seems improbable. The inception of Breshna.io was a response to a glaring gap in purposeful communication and education. Mariam’s realization that traditional methods like brochures and workshops were insufficient for behavior change led her to leverage her passion for gaming and create a social-impact gaming studio. Through this experience, she identified the immense demand for purposeful video games being stifled by the time, skills, and cost barriers of making games. This unique background fueled her vision of creating a platform for anyone to create video games without coding or design skills. “I grew up playing games like SimCity, where I was learning about urban planning, without even knowing I was learning about urban planning,” Mariam reflects.
The Educational Revolution through Gaming
While Breshna.io has a vast spectrum of use cases, this visionary founder strongly believes in the transformative power of video games in education. “Video games have an impact that far transcends the virtual boundaries in which we play them,” she asserts. Recognizing teachers’ challenges in integrating games into their curriculum, Breshna.io empowers them to create snackable educational video games aligned with their lesson plans. It helps teachers transition from passive consumers to active creators of technology: “Teachers and students are the biggest content creators on the planet: we give them the power to create their own video games.” This shift in educational technology is a core tenet of Breshna.io’s mission.
“Games are a universal language; often, we look at kids, and it seems as if gaming and education are at war with each other,” says Mariam.
“There is a world where they can co-exist – and we don’t have to peel the kids away from their screens. We can make that screen time meaningful and allow them to consume games and become content creators: the types of games kids can create when they’re empowered are insane.”
A Carnival of Creativity: Monetizing in the Metaverse
The world of AI/no-code content creation, user-generated games, and web3 is rapidly expanding, and Breshna.io is uniquely positioned at the intersection of these emerging tech trends. Breshna.io’s product roadmap includes an AI-powered text-to-game engine to create games even faster, further simplifying game creation for content creators. Breshna.io also plans to revolutionize how game creators can showcase and monetize their work. Introducing a carnival-themed metaverse, the Breshnaverse, where game makers will have their stands, akin to stalls in a physical carnival, bringing a playful and innovative approach to content sharing and monetization. The platform uses blockchain technology for secure and transparent transactions – a content creator’s dream come true.
Empowering a Global Community
Breshna.io’s global reach is a testament to its universal appeal. With a significant user base in countries like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Nigeria, and India, the platform reflects a diverse range of voices and stories. Breshna.io’s vision extends beyond mere game creation; it’s about democratizing narrative control in the gaming world – by diversifying the content we see in games and other content.
Anyone can explore the creative possibilities on Breshna.io. Whether it’s a game about makeup trivia, a tool for climate action education, or educating girls and women about reproductive health, the potential is limitless. Breshna.io isn’t just a platform; it’s transforming how we learn, engage, and innovate. It’s a movement towards a more inclusive, creative, and empowered world of gaming.
