Here's an interesting competition - over at Ashoka's Changemakers.net, they have posted the finalists for the 'Why Games Matter' health games challenge, with voting open until November 7th.

According to the page: "The three entries that receive the most votes will each receive US $5,000. All finalists will attend the Changemakers Change Summit at the RWJF-sponsored Games for Health Conference in May 2008." The finalists include some games we've encountered before, such as Ayiti: The Cost Of Life, which "...ses the location of Haiti to educate players about the obstacles to education faced by children in developing countries."

Ian Bogost's Fatworld game, which "...explores the relationships between obesity, nutrition, and socioeconomics in the contemporary U.S.", is also a finalist, but possibly the most interesting entry is Dance Mela, a Bollywood dancing game using dancepads that has already "signed over 2,000 internet cafes and installed over 20,000 seats" in India. Your good health through games!