AS Shanghai initiated mandatory garbage sorting last week, games and toys that explore fun ways to spread garbage sorting knowhow have been gaining popularity among young people.

A 15-second video of a VR game went viral on Chinese social media in the past week. In the video, players wearing VR equipment can see four different types of trash cans in front of them, and they throw the different types of garbage appearing in front of them into the corresponding buckets to score points.

This VR garbage sorting game debuted at the Mobile World Congress Shanghai in late June. Although this is not the only VR game at the venue, visitors lined up around the booth to explore the game because of its garbage sorting theme.

Wu Xia, founder and CEO of VitrellaCore, the company that created the game, said the purpose of this VR game is to provide an interesting method for learning about garbage sorting. “It’s simple and easy to understand. Residents can practice garbage sorting without actually going through the rubbish, and it is also a more effective method than using paper documents to train garbage sorting volunteers,” Wu said.

On Taobao, an e-commerce platform under Alibaba, the sales volume of one garbage sorting toy increased by nearly 300 units June 30. This set of toys consists of four miniature sorting bins with cards representing various types of garbage. Most of those who purchased this toy were from Shanghai.

One residential community called Jiayou in Shanghai’s Jiading District ordered several toys for its residents. “We hope to raise children’s interest in garbage sorting,” said Xing Minxia, secretary of the Jiayou Community branch of the Communist Party of China. “These innovative methods can win the young people’s hearts and make them feel like garbage sorting is fun instead of a burden,” said Mao Qing, director of a community cultural activity center in Changning District.

Residents of this community have recently been keen on a mobile game called “Race Against Time.” In 45 seconds, players are required to move the categorized trash bin to catch the garbage belonging to this category. Players who win the game can participate in a lucky draw.

Fan Weicheng, deputy director of Shanghai Oriental Publicity and Education Service Center, which developed the game, said about 21,000 people have played it since its launch in early June.

The VR garbage sorting game will be launched on the Steam platform and China’s Tencent WeGame platform this August, according to Wu.

(Xinhua)