Tree of Life – Serious Gaming

In the Serious Gaming course, I had the opportunity to work with an international team of students to develop a board game centered around the theory of evolution. This project challenged us to combine educational objectives with engaging game mechanics, creating a learning experience through play.

The course focused on the idea of using game elements as a powerful tool to drive education, and our aim was to bring the complex concept of evolution to life in an approachable, interactive way. Our game, Evolve, was structured in layers, with each layer representing a different era in evolutionary history. Players would begin as single-celled organisms and, over the course of the game, advance through various evolutionary stages by collecting key features and traits.

Each player had to strategically collect these evolutionary traits, such as physical adaptations, survival skills, and reproductive abilities, to evolve into more complex organisms. Eventually, the ultimate goal was to evolve into a human being. The gameplay itself was designed to mirror the slow but inevitable process of natural evolution—gradual, adaptive, and filled with challenges along the way.

The experience of designing Evolve not only deepened my understanding of evolution but also reinforced the idea that games can serve as more than just entertainment. They can be powerful tools for education, making complex subjects engaging and accessible. Collaborating with a diverse group of students made the project even more rewarding, as we were able to bring in different perspectives to enrich the game’s development.