Science Hunters (1) is a programme of projects that has successful utilised the popular computer game Minecraft to engage children from under-represented backgrounds with geosciences, engineering and other related areas for the last decade (2). Projects use a defined approach which allows interest-led, constructive exploration of specific topics, which our research has shown can successfully increasing subject knowledge and understanding (3), while Minecraft can act to draw children to engaging with topics (4).
Since 2020, the Building to Break Barriers (5) and Engineering for Sustainable Societies (6) projects, supported by Royal Academy of Engineering Ingenious Awards, have used Minecraft to engage children with exploring the Sustainable Development Goals, developing a range of topics for children, mainly within a key target age range of 7-14 years, to explore. These were delivered as virtual and in-person sessions with schools and community groups, with related activity resources freely available on the project websites.
‘River management’ resources introduced information about rivers, flooding and resulting disruption, and the concept of river management for flood prevention including examples of both ‘hard’ structural measures and ‘soft’ natural approaches. ‘Natural Flood Management’ resources built upon these, to consider sustainable solutions and link explicitly to the SDGs, in particular SDGs 6 (Clean water and sanitation), 9 (Industry, innovation and infrastructure) and 11 (Sustainable cities and communities). Here, we outline our approach, outputs for supporting children to explore river management and sustainable solutions, and feedback from teachers, community group leaders and children.
1 https://www.uwe.ac.uk/research/centres-and-groups/scu/projects/science-hunters
2 Hobbs et al., 2018. Digging Deep into Geosciences with Minecraft. Eos, 99(11), 24-29
3 Hobbs et al., 2019. Science Hunters: Teaching Science Concepts in Schools Using Minecraft. Action Research and Innovation in Science Education, 2(2), 13-21
4 Hobbs et al., 2019. Using Minecraft to engage children with science at public events. Research for All, 3(2), 142–60
5 https://www.uwe.ac.uk/research/centres-and-groups/scu/projects/building-to-break-barriers
6 https://www.uwe.ac.uk/research/centres-and-groups/scu/projects/science-hunters-engineering
How to cite: Hobbs, L., Behenna, S., and Clayson-Lavelle, P.: Engaging children with river and Natural Flood Management in Minecraft, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-3837, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-3837, 2025.
In 2024, we published QUARTETnary - the card game about the geological time scale with the help of almost 400 Kickstarter backers. In QUARTETnary, players collect sets of four cards belonging to a certain geological time unit with the aim of obtaining the most complete geological time line to win the game. Consisting of 60 beautifully illustrated and colourful cards, QUARTETnary has players explore all the important events in Earth’s history: from dinosaurs to humans and from the formation of the Alps to the formation of the Himalayas.
As of January 2025, all Kickstarter backers have received their games, meaning that people around the world are now starting to play QUARTETnary. This is an excellent opportunity to quantify QUARTETnary’s educational benefits and see how it fares as a tool for science education in addition to being a fun game to play.
To quantify the educational benefits of playing QUARTETnary, we asked initial playtesters and Kickstarter backers to fill in a survey before playing QUARTETnary (118 respondents) and after playing QUARTETnary (35 respondents as of January 2025). The surveys assess players’ knowledge of the geological time scale and the history of the Earth through both self-assessment (“How much do you know about Earth’s history?”) and objective questions testing knowledge of specific events (“Which geological time period(s) ended with a major mass extinction?”) and the order of events (“What happened in the same time period during which the Sahara was formed?”). By comparing the results from the before and after playing QUARTETnary survey, we are able to assess if and how players’ knowledge on the history of the Earth improves through playing QUARTETnary. In addition, we gather subjective feedback through the surveys on what players think of QUARTETnary both in terms of being fun to play and as an educational tool.
Our results show that the number of people who can correctly identify the colours of time periods increases from approximately 50% to 75% by playing QUARTETnary. In addition, the five time periods with mass extinctions are more often correctly identified with for example 31% of people correctly identifying the Ordovician as having ended with a mass extinction in the before survey and 60% of people doing so in the after survey. Overall, people enjoy playing QUARTETnary with 85% of respondents giving QUARTETnary an 8 out of 10 or higher.
Note that our results are biased in terms of demographics, with a significant amount of respondents being highly educated (with over 41% having completed a PhD in the before survey) and already familiar with the nomenclature of the geological time scale (almost 50% of respondents give themselves a 7 out of 10 or higher when asked how familiar they are with the names of the geological time scale in the before survey).
Looking towards the future, we will announce the rudimentary idea and timeline for the next game of The Silly Scientist. Just like QUARTETnary, our new game rocks! And yes, that is a hint for the theme of our next game…
How to cite: van Zelst, I., Peskens, R., and Perez-Diaz, L.: Quantifying QUARTETnary as a tool for science education, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-11714, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-11714, 2025.
Fieldwork is an essential part of geoscience education, offering hands-on experience in observing and analyzing geological formations. However, participation in fieldwork is often limited by logistical, physical or financial constraints, excluding many students from this critical component of their education. To address this, we present an innovative project that leverages digital technology to create an inclusive virtual fieldwork experience, utilizing Unreal Engine 5 to simulate the practices of geoscientists in an immersive and interactive environment.
The core of the project involves the use of photogrammetry to capture and digitize real-world geological outcrops (RBVR: reality-based virtual reality) and transforming high-resolution models into game-ready 3D assets. These assets are integrated into an Unreal Engine 5 framework, enabling users to explore realistic representations of real geological sites. Unreal Engine 5’s visualization capabilities, such as Nanite and Lumen, are employed to deliver visual fidelity to enhancing the sense of immersion.
In addition to its visual realism, the platform incorporates gameplay mechanics and interactive functions that emulate authentic geoscientific practices, for example collection of field equipment, safety standards and measurement of discontinuity orientations. These features provide students with a simulated fieldwork experience, fostering skill development and comprehension of key concepts in geology.
This project demonstrates the potential of immersive technologies to complement geoscience education by broadening accessibility and expanding the subsequent processing of the field work. By offering a virtual environment in addition to traditional fieldwork, our platform not only addresses barriers to participation but also provides a scalable and customizable solution for a wide range of educational settings. This approach underscores the transformative role of technology in creating equitable and inclusive learning environments for future geoscientists.
How to cite: Seiling, A.-D., Pastaschuck, R., Duda, M., Bartmann, K., and Backers, T.: GeoVis: Developing an immersive educational tool using Unreal Engine 5, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-20783, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-20783, 2025.
Micropaleontology focuses on studying microscopic fossilized remains of organisms, typically smaller than two millimeters, such as Foraminifera and Ostracoda. Micropaleontology is vital for dating geologic records, reconstructing ancient environments, and monitoring modern ecosystems. Micropaleontological skills are also highly valued in industry, yet they are often omitted in undergraduate geology programs.
FossilSketch is an online educational software designed to facilitate learning of micropaleontology. It enhances the traditional lab-based micropaleontology classes and allows for active learning of microfossil identification through a combination of informational videos, exercises, and interactive mini-games. The student centered learning approach in FossilSketch is driven by providing scaffolding and immediate feedback to users. Analysis of classroom assessments showed that junior and senior geology majors who used FossilSketch were better able to understand the process of microfossil identification and achieve a correct identification than those who did not use FossilSketch (Stepanova et al., 2024).
Gamification in geosciences enhances learning by incorporating game-based elements, such as challenges, rewards, and interactive simulations, to engage students and improve their understanding of complex geological concepts. In FossilSketch, students interactively practice and learn to recognize morphological features through mini-games that divide the identification process into smaller tasks before combining their skills to identify common genera or morphotypes. After learning to identify microfossils, students apply this knowledge to interpret microfossil assemblages and gain insight into various micropaleontology applications in research and industry.
FossilSketch offers six engaging mini-games of varying difficulty, each designed to teach key morphological features of microfossils:
1. What microfossil is this?:
- Level 1: Sort specimens into three categories—Foraminifera, Ostracoda, and "Other."
- Level 2: Classify Foraminifera as planktonic or benthic.
2. Identify microfossil features:
- A game designed to help players identify key microfossil features by analyzing highlighted details in the images.
3. Foraminifera Chamber Arrangement Matching:
- For each of the three game rounds, students match four randomly selected Foraminifera images to the correct chamber arrangement card.
4. Foraminifera Morphotype Matching:
- A simplified classification game where students drag and drop Foraminifera images to match them with their overall test shape in three rounds of the game.
5. Ostracoda Valve Outline:
- Match images of ostracod valves with their corresponding outline cards by dragging and dropping in three rounds of the game.
6. Ostracoda Valve Orientation:
- Learn proper orientation of ostracod valves by rotating incorrectly oriented valves to align the dorsal side upwards in four rounds of the game.
Each game incorporates interactive elements to enhance learning and retention of microfossil morphology. For all games, students receive star ratings from zero to three based on how many rounds they completed correctly on the first attempt. In all the mini-games, students could advance to the next round only by submitting a correct answer.
References:
Stepanova, A., Belanger, C., Anwar, S., Stanley, C., Nath, A., Cherian, J., & Hammond, T. (2024). Using the interactive software FossilSketch to teach micropaleontology to undergraduate students. Journal of Geoscience Education, 1-21.
How to cite: Stepanova, A., Belanger, C., Dabhi, U., Bajaj, D., Bhavsar, S., Bang, D., Anwar, S., and Hammond, T.: The use of educational games in micropaleontology: FossilSketch software to teach microfossil identification, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-14034, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-14034, 2025.
Ice cores are a cornerstone of climate research, offering invaluable data on past atmospheric conditions to help us understand current climate change. The Beyond EPICA project seeks to recover a stratigraphically intact ice core from East Antarctica, capturing a record of atmospheric gases spanning 1.5 million years to study the mid-Pleistocene climate transition.
However, drilling ice cores in Antarctica is no easy feat. Fieldwork on the Antarctic Plateau is marked by extreme conditions and unexpected challenges—often humorous, sometimes frustrating, occasionally even catastrophic. Inspired by these real-life experiences and developed in Antarctica itself, Beyond EPICA: The Game invites players to step into the heart of this scientific adventure.
Designed for 2–8 players, the game combines strategy, teamwork, and resilience as players take on the roles of Beyond EPICA field participants. Players must navigate logistical and environmental obstacles to reach the Little Dome C drill site and complete their ice core—managing resources, overcoming setbacks, and maintaining mental stamina along the way. Action cards featuring real-world scenarios—such as equipment failures, harsh weather, and the trials of daily life—immerse players in the realities of Antarctic fieldwork. Modular rules allow for flexible gameplay, while card annotations provide deeper insights into the challenges of polar research.
Beyond EPICA: The Game serves as an engaging educational tool, offering players a hands-on understanding of the science, logistics, and human effort behind ice-core drilling. It provides an opportunity to explore the intersection of climate research and polar exploration, fostering curiosity and appreciation for geoscientific endeavors.
How to cite: Gerber, T. A., Bienville, N., Alemany, O., Ceinini, A., Dallmayr, R., Gay, I., Hüther, M., Joos, F., Koldtoft, I., Lawer, G., Lemburg, J., Mühl, M., Panichi, S., Possenti, P., Scoto, F., Veale, J., and Westhoff, J.: Beyond EPICA: The Game, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-8263, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-8263, 2025.
In today’s fast-paced digital world, scientific misinformation can spread rapidly. Civic science literacy—the ability to understand how scientific knowledge is developed and evolves—is an essential skill. This skill equips individuals to better grasp how scientific understanding changes over time and critically evaluate information presented in the media, a vital component of media literacy. This is particularly crucial in areas such as climate change science. However, key aspects of science literacy are challenging to convey effectively. With traditional education systems already tasked with numerous learning objectives, complex interdisciplinary topics like scientific literacy often receive insufficient attention.
Recognizing the need for innovative approaches, our project has developed a fun and educational board game to tackle science literacy called SCIBORG. This game primarily tackles the steps of the scientific method: observation, question, hypothesis, experiment, and conclusion. The game takes place over three phases: hypothesis, experiment, and conclusion. In each phase, players collect components such as “collect sufficient data” and “find collaboration partners” to earn points. Whoever has the most points over the three phases wins. The board game includes examples from a wide variety of scientific fields including ecology, physics, history, engineering, psychology, and medicine in order to highlight that these steps are applied across fields. Players have bonus cards with specific research goals such as “Build a robot” and “Mission to Mars!” that tackle interdisciplinary topics. Finally, chance cards are dealt after every phase such as “You have a scientific breakthrough” and “Your research proposal was rejected” to illustrate the uncontrollable factors in research.
The game was play-tested with various groups both inside and outside of the classroom. Pre- and post-questionnaires were given to the players to assess their understanding of the scientific method and their reaction to the game. The game is available both online and in a print and play format. We will present the idea behind the game, its mechanics, as well as our first evaluation results.
How to cite: Coulson, L. E., Lekkas, K., Morar, C., Matei, L., and Feldbacher, E.: SCIBORG: The Science Literacy Board Game, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-1625, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-1625, 2025.
ClimarisQ is a smartphone/web game from a scientific mediation project that highlights the complexity of the climate system and the urgency of collective action to limit climate change. It is available in several languages. It is an app-game where players must make decisions to limit the frequency and impacts of extreme climate events and their impacts on human societies using real climate models. The goal of the game is to explore the effects of mitigation and adaptation choices to extreme climate events at the local, regional and global levels. Can you achieve a greener trajectory than the IPCC RCP 4.5 emission scenario by playing ClimarisQ? Explore the feedback mechanisms (notably physical, but also economic and social) that produce extreme effects on the climate system.In the game, you make decisions on a continental scale and see the impact of these decisions on the economy, politics and the environment. You will have to deal with extreme events (heat waves, cold waves, heavy rainfall and drought) generated by a real climate model. Then, you will have to try to balance the "popularity", "ecology" and "finance" gauges as long as possible. Fulfill all the missions to explore different climates. The game-over displays both the PPM (parts per million) of CO2 deviation from the intermediate scenario of greenhouse gas emissions established by the IPCC (RCP4.5), as well as the number of survival game turns. These elements stimulate thinking about climate change and motivate the player to do better next time. Thanks to the hazards introduced by the extreme events and cards, every game is different! The game is availabe for several platforms: Android, IoS, Web PC and freely downloadable here: http://climarisq.ipsl.fr
How to cite: Faranda, D. and the and the ClimarisQ team: ClimarisQ: A game on the complexity of the climate systems and the extreme events, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-5808, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-5808, 2025.
A vital aspect often missing in science communication for young adults and university students is the opportunity to make the concept of research tangible early in their studies. Scientific findings are frequently presented in a 'top-down' manner, leaving the methods and realities of research projects as abstract concepts. To address this gap, we have developed a role-playing game that places participants in the shoes of researchers planning a large-scale scientific collaboration. This approach aims to provide participants with a clear and practical understanding of how contemporary research operates, particularly within the context of large-scale collaborations.
In this game, participants first receive an introduction to the subject matter, such as climate science or atmospheric research. They are then provided with a "toolbox" of methods specific to the topic, each with associated costs in money and personnel. Each method can yield "research points," determined later by rolling dice. Working in teams of 3–5, participants select from a list of research questions and collaboratively devise a plan to allocate their resources effectively to answer their chosen question.
The game concludes with dice rolls determining the research points for each team, simulating the role of chance in scientific outcomes. This approach engages participants with the challenges of finite resources, the importance of strategic planning, and the realities of uncertainty in research.
The game has been successfully implemented at the LCOY 2024 Conference in Berlin and with a smaller group of students at the University of Mainz. Participants reported gaining valuable insights into the intricacies of active, cutting-edge research while finding the experience both engaging and educational. This game demonstrates the power of gamification in communicating the complexities of science in an interactive and impactful way.
How to cite: Schwenk, C. and Jeske, A.: Making Research more Tangible through Role-Playing: A Game-Based Approach to Understanding Large Scientific Collaborations, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-4274, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-4274, 2025.
Educating people to safe behaviors and raising risk awareness are activities that are often considered among the most cost-effective measures to face geohazards. At the same time, game-based learning is an effective means to convey messages that persist in the mind of people and to reach different age groups.In this work we explain the game mechanics, and the reasons behind them, that we adopted to create a semi-competitive strategy boardgame named Dangers and Dwellers, where the players interpret up to 8 characters, each playing a different role in the disaster risk management of a fictional island frequently struck by floods, earthquakes and landslides.The game lasts for 6 turns, during which the island and its inhabitants must not go beyond a certain level of physical, economical and psychological damage. Each turn is divided into two phases: during the first phase the players must collectively debate on how and which of their unique abilities should be implemented. The players must manage a shared pool of resources to invest in risk prediction, mitigation or response. During the second phase, a geohazard hits the island and the damages are calculated according to the actions played during the first phase. Other than preserving the island and its people, each player has an individual goal, that under some circumstances may go against the general interest.We have spent a four-month period carrying out several playtests that were necessary to calibrate the difficulty and the duration of the game. In the ever-challenging task of transmitting knowledge while at the same time being entertaining and engaging, we leaned toward the latter, by drawing from the mechanics of boardgames popular in the gamers’ community. Surprisingly, despite the game being initially targeted at adults and high-school students, we witnessed a marked interest in the game also by primary school students. The presence of a game master at every session ensured smooth gameplay, even among casual gamers and large groups.The playtest showed that the game mechanics successfully reproduce the dynamics of actual societies in front of natural hazards, and players must continuously make hard choices and face contradictions. In this way we aim to deliver important messages on disaster risk management both explicitly and implicitly.
How to cite: Intrieri, E., Segoni, S., Cardi, F., and Bandecchi, E.: Dangers and Dwellers: design and playtest of a semi-collaborative boardgame on sustainable management of geohazards, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-8564, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-8564, 2025.
Effectively communicating natural hazard risks to diverse audiences remains a critical challenge in fostering resilience. Safe Haven – Landslides, developed within the Horizon Europe The HuT project, is a tabletop serious game designed to enhance understanding and management of landslide risk through an engaging, interactive approach.
The game employs simple yet dynamic card-based mechanics to simulate real-world challenges associated with landslide hazard and risk. Participants need to manage the landslide risk in a region. During the game, they gain insights into the complex interplay of factors influencing landslide risk and explore effective mitigation strategies. Target audiences include high-school students, educators, and different stakeholders offering them a collaborative, interactive environment to discuss and experiment with risk management concepts.
Preliminary testing has demonstrated Safe Haven’s ability to foster engagement and improve participants’ awareness of landslide dynamics and mitigation strategies. Building on this success, the game has been adapted for other hazards, such as floods (Safe Haven – Floods), and further developments are underway to address heatwaves (Safe Haven – Heat Waves), broadening its relevance and impact.
This presentation will explore the design, implementation, and preliminary outcomes of Safe Haven – Landslides, illustrating how game-based approaches can serve as powerful tools for geoscience communication, education, and training.
How to cite: Gargiulo, M. V., Calvello, M., Oostwegel, L. J. N., and Rianna, G.: Safe Haven – Landslides: A Serious Game for Enhancing Landslide Risk Awareness and Management, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-4526, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-4526, 2025.
Claims about the ‘power’ of games and simulations to slow the speed of climate change are sometimes exaggerated. We have therefore embarked on a literature review of academic publications on the topic of simulation/gaming and climate change. In our presentation, we will summarize the work so far.
As we write this abstract, we have identified over 400 items, some published in peer-reviewed journals, some in games conference proceedings, some in magazines or blogs. We will therefore need to design careful inclusion/exclusion criteria, to have a pool of from 20 to 40 publications.
The types of publications vary widely: research on a particular game, tips on facilitating, overview of the role of games in climate education, use of simulation as a climate research tool, role-play of climate negotiations, necessity of debriefing, evaluation of climate games. Types of games mentioned or examined also vary: board, online, computerized, single player, interactive, video, escape rooms and even gamification.
We hope that our review will be able to reveal a variety of elements, such as:
- the real potential and limits of games to influence climate education;
- how exaggerated the claims are about the power of climate games;
- what aspects of global warming are present in game publications and in games, e.g., carbon cycle, how GHGs actually 'heat' the planet, floods, hurricanes (and why), slowing of AMOC, role and acidification of the ocean;
- the use of debriefing in climate games.
Our aim is not to propose a taxonomy of climate, althiough categories of climate game types may emerge in the literature.
[Please note that most ‘games’ related to climate change education are in fact simulations, often with game elements. In keeping with the long tradition of simulation/gaming (dating back to the early pioneers, such as Duke, Greenblat, Guetzkow), we use the term game to refer to the whole spectrum of interactive events (Ken Jones’ term), from 100% simulation to hybrid simulation/games.]
If you are interested in contributing to this work, please come to see us at our poster, or contact us here oceans dot climate at gmail.
How to cite: Crookall, D., Blair, B., Promduangsri, P., Wellman, R., Krakovska, S., and Nguyen, U.-P. (.: Climate change games literature review: Report on work in progress, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-5211, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-5211, 2025.
Serious games are designed for purposes beyond entertainment, serving as powerful tools to address environmental challenges. They foster education, engagement, and behavioural change by offering immersive experiences that enable players, stakeholders, and decision-makers to understand complex issues and co-create solutions. However, for beginners, navigating the field of serious games can be difficult. To address this challenge, the Serious Games Cookbook was developed as a practical guide for beginners. It covers essential aspects of applying serious games, including setting objectives, selecting suitable games, and organising game sessions. The cookbook also provides guidance on designing serious games, addressing content development, game mechanics, player engagement, and techniques for influencing perspectives. This presentation will share insights into the development of the Serious Games Cookbook and demonstrate its potential to enhance our collective capacity to tackle environmental challenges.
How to cite: Mao, F.: Learning to address environmental challenges using serious games: A cookbook for beginners, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-3570, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-3570, 2025.
"Clouded Judgments" is an educational board game designed to deepen understanding of meteorological alert systems and the complexities of decision-making under uncertainty. Inspired by the weather alert framework used in Liguria, Italy, by the Regional Agency for the Environmental Protection of Liguria (ARPAL), the game introduces players to the probabilistic nature of forecasting and the challenges of managing uncertainty in predictions. Players navigate scenarios involving varying degrees of forecast reliability, balancing the risks of overestimating threats (leading to economic and social costs) and underestimating dangers (potentially compromising safety and lives).
Game mechanics include thematic card decks (e.g., "Atmospheric Events" and "Actions"), reliability tokens, resource tokens, and dice rolls to simulate probabilistic outcomes. Players begin with limited resources and must decide whether to invest in improving their forecasting reliability—by upgrading instrumentation or analysis tools—or to use action cards for immediate benefits. Measurements are conducted over successive days, represented by dice rolls, which determine the accuracy of weather data based on the players’ reliability levels. While uncertainty decreases as more data is collected, players must still interpret incomplete or contradictory information and issue an alert specifying its intensity, time of the day, and type. Correctly issued alerts reward resources, while underestimations incur penalties, simulating the societal and economic consequences of misjudged decisions. To avoid underestimations, players may adopt cautious strategies by overestimating threats, prioritizing safety but potentially incurring economic losses.
The game simulates the chaotic nature of atmospheric events, and the resource trade-offs faced in real-world forecasting. By immersing players in scenarios that require critical decision-making and risk management, "Clouded Judgments" allows students to experience the complexities of meteorological management firsthand, beyond theoretical knowledge.
Designed for educators and students, "Clouded Judgments" fosters critical thinking, engagement with meteorological concepts, and an understanding of uncertainty and risk management. By blending real-world analogies with interactive gameplay, the game connects scientific principles to practical applications, making it a valuable tool for teaching and outreach.
Future plans include classroom playtesting phases and outreach activities to evaluate the game’s educational impact and refine its mechanics. "Clouded Judgments" exemplifies how gamification can effectively bridge the gap between complex systems through which meteorological events are managed and public understanding, offering a novel approach to science education and decision-making training.
How to cite: Brusasco, L., Nardella, M., Vannini, S., and Lertora, N. C.: Clouded Judgments: An Educational Board Game for Teaching Meteorological Decision-Making Under Uncertainty, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-638, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-638, 2025.
One of the main aims of study programmes in physical geography and related subjects is to convey a deep understanding of earth surface processes. Practical constraints often force curriculum developers to stick to traditional learning formats, with limited options for the creations of innovative, exciting learning environments. We attempt to close this gap by creating a freely available physical geography computer game. The primary target audience will be bachelor students of geography and related subjects, but the environment will be flexible enough to be adapted for high schools, awareness-building towards geomorphic risks etc. it will be optimized for virtual reality experiences, but also useable with basic equipment (ordinary PCs and laptops, possibly mobile phones) in order to increase reach and accessibility. The game is developed with Unreal Engine 5.
The scene of the game is an 80 km x 80 km landscape featuring all major geomorphic landforms and biomes in a logical arrangement, from the equator to high latitudes, and from high mountains to the deep sea. Terrain elevation is scaled by 1:10, meaning that the highest mountains peak at roughly 900 m asl. Technically speaking, the gaming environment consists of six closely related elements: (i) terrain, created in GIS essentially through the interpolation of manually drawn contour lines; (ii) land cover, created mainly from materials, grass, and foliage available for Unreal Engine; (iii) processes (landslides, volcanic eruptions etc.); (iv) player movement through trails, roads, railways, air and water transport; (v) light and atmospheric conditions; and (vi) most importantly, a set of tasks and rewards.
The player will move through the landscape and guided through the tasks. Tasks will be related to each other, following a storyline, and will focus on gaining a deep understanding of earth surface processes in an exciting interactive way. Particular emphasis will be put on the understanding of spatial and functional relations, e.g. vegetation transects or connections between different geomorphic processes. Rewards will be awarded at important milestones along the storyline.
The proposed gaming environment is still in a very early phase of its first stage of development, in which components (i)–(iv) are implemented along with an initial set of tasks and rewards. This prototype is then intended to be exposed to the target audience, so that students are invited to add their own ideas and that the game will be gradually enhanced and improved. It will be made available to the public as soon as considered mature enough.
How to cite: Mergili, M. and Pfeffer, H.: A comprehensive physical geography game for virtual reality, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-10446, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-10446, 2025.
Various contemporary developments, such as changes in water demand and availability due to climate and demographic change, are challenging for water utilities. Raising awareness regarding these issues is essential not only for the general public but also for students in classrooms.
The EWA tool, a free online tool (available at https://sww-ewa.tugraz.at/) aimed at developing optimal designs for water supply systems under uncertain water demand availability, has been equipped with a flexible gamification system to support teachers and educators with this task. The tool provides a user-friendly interface through which hydraulic models can be uploaded, simulated, and optimized for different scenarios. It calculates performance indicators such as demand coverage or the number of unsupplied nodes to enable well-founded planning.
The embedded gamification system allows users to create realistic “challenges” that reflect complex water supply problems with a challenge editor. The generated challenges can be combined with custom models to provide a playful approach to problem-solving tailored to specific water supply systems. Success in challenges is rewarded with prizes, reinforcing the learning content and making planning an intuitive experience.
Students can solve individual challenges, such as a challenge where the population in a future area is growing, and the water supply systems need to be expanded to supply all nodes adequately. Tasks can also be created for varying operational conditions, such as fire situations or system failures.
The tool's simulation and gamification approaches make it an ideal teaching tool. Students, in particular, can use practical scenarios to better understand the complexities of water supply. At the same time, the tool promotes awareness of future challenges as users can see the impact of demographic and climate change on the systems.
Through this combination of strategic planning, gamification, and knowledge transfer, the EWA tool makes a valuable contribution to students' education and awareness in the classroom. It not only makes the complex requirements for a resilient water supply comprehensible but also conveys them in an engaging and interactive way.
How to cite: Arbesser-Rastburg, G., Stelzl, A., Adler, V., Camhy, D., Pirker, J., and Fuchs-Hanusch, D.: Integrating the EWA Tool into Teaching and Raising Awareness of Water Supply Challenges, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-19579, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-19579, 2025.
“A life-threatening asteroid is approaching Earth. Mission AVERT, designed to deflect it from its trajectory, is ready to launch – if only the missing launch codes can be recovered in time...”
Interactive games offer an innovative approach to geoscience outreach, fostering curiosity and learning through hands-on challenges. With Mission AVERT, we created a multimedia geoscience-themed escape room game designed for 13 - 14-year-olds to explore geoscience concepts in an engaging and accessible format. Inspired by NASA’s DART mission, students solve puzzles encrypting the mission’s launch codes to deflect a life-threatening asteroid from colliding with Earth.
Mission AVERT showcases the diverse and essential role of geoscience in addressing real-world challenges. Its puzzles cover a broad spectrum of geoscience topics, including earthquakes, climate change, planetary science, and scientific policy communication. Solving them requires teamwork and a variety of skills – ranging from mathematics and physics to language, creativity, and keen observation – ensuring that every student can contribute meaningfully based on their individual strengths. By featuring students and staff from Imperial College London in video messages, Mission AVERT offers young participants relatable role models working and conducting research in geoscience. Comprised of an interactive website, videos, and paper-based puzzles, it integrates seamlessly into classrooms, with little setup or preparation required.
Here, we will explore the design process, educational objectives, and preliminary feedback and lessons learned from our first classroom implementation. We discuss how escape rooms like Mission AVERT can spark an interest in geoscience while equipping students with problem-solving and teamwork skills.
How to cite: Locher, V., Kanimova, E., Johnson, E., Leibowitz, Z., and Zhao, J.: Mission AVERT: A Geoscience Escape Room, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-19303, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-19303, 2025.
Do you dare to enter the model land? Brave adventurers are sought to explore the mathematical depths of strange new worlds. Your quest will be full of uncertainty, unknowns, and potential misdirections. But the rewards for success are high! Only the wisest will emerge victorious, having uncovered some hidden secret of the universe or been shown tantalising glimpses of possible futures.
Numerical models are used to guide decision-making across almost every part of society, from weather forecasts to predicting flooding, from financial investments to managing outbreaks of disease. Whilst the models try to represent reality, or at least some aspect of it, they make assumptions, are forced into simplifications, and incorporate the biases of their creators and the data they use. Because of this, they create their own version of reality, a concept Thompson (2022) calls ‘model land’.
Adventures in Model Land invites you to bring these worlds to life and to go inside them. Inspired by tabletop roleplay games (TTRPG), we have created an open-source framework to guide you through the process of imagining a model land. Further levels in the framework help you create quests for groups of players to explore the model land, or to reshape existing games to play by the rules of your model. This process is intended to be an enjoyable way to engage with your models but can also lead to greater insights into their limitations and, crucially, their usefulness.
This poster will demonstrate the first level of the Adventures in Model Land framework and provide a link to the document. Members of the project team will be available to discuss your model lands and how you can get involved with the wider project.
Thompson, E., (2022). Escape from Model Land: How mathematical models can lead us astray and what we can do about it. Basic Books.
How to cite: Skinner, C., Thompson, E., Lewis, E., Hut, R., and Illingworth, S.: Adventures in Model Land, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-7032, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-7032, 2025.
Effective communication of flood risk and the importance of mitigation strategies is crucial to strengthen resilience in communities facing increasing climate challenges. Risky Rudi is an innovative, interactive card game designed to engage players in understanding the three dimensions of risk - hazard, vulnerability and exposure - while exploring the complexities of flood risk management decision-making.
Players act as mayors and are tasked with maintaining their city's resilience score with a limited amount of money. The game includes risk reduction cards categorized by hazard, vulnerability and exposure, each with a cost and effectiveness score (1-10). These cards simulate real-world actions such as developing infrastructure, installing early warning systems, improving education, etc. Periodic flood events, whose intensities are determined by a dice roll, request players to use these measures strategically.
Risky Rudi also includes funding cards, representing financial support, and obstruction cards, such as political influence or social inequality, to reflect systemic challenges in flood risk management. Joker cards, such as the climate scientist, provide an additional element to the game mechanics.
Through the game, participants gain insight into the interconnectedness of risk components, the cost-effectiveness of different interventions, and the socio-political barriers to implementation.
How to cite: Meyer, A. and Höller, P.: “Risky Rudi” – A Card Game for Communicating Flood Risk and Mitigation Strategies, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-953, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-953, 2025.
As a media artist, I inquire about climate science through artistic practice, software, and infrastructure studies, and I develop participatory methods to engage the public in climate simulation. In this presentation, I will discuss my artistic and theoretical research into the simple climate model Hector. This model emulates complex Earth System Models (ESM) and calculates temperature change based on the impact of various climate scenarios. The presentation will take the shape of a demo of what I have called a "climate engine", where I have replicated Hector's modelling system within the blueprint of a game engine (Unreal Engine). During this demo, I walk the public through the interface of Hector's climate engine to re-narrate the model's imaginary of climate futures. Finally, I will discuss the potential and limitations of mobilising climate models through artistic game practices to think otherwise about public engagement in climate actions.
How to cite: Legrand, G.: Hector's climate engine, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-17418, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-17418, 2025.
Climate services, encompassing information products such as weather forecasts and advisories, aim to support decision-making. However, the uptake of climate services remains limited despite advancements in data quality and quantity. Challenges to usability arise from inadequate recognition of local context, a lack of integration of local knowledge and insufficient actionable information for decision-making. Addressing these challenges requires approaches that emphasize the integration of diverse knowledge systems, beyond scientific knowledge, and foster continuous exchange between stakeholders. For climate services this means knowledge exchange and integration between climate service providers, purveyors, and end users.
In this research, we explore whether accessibility and perceived usability of climate information improve when local knowledge is integrated with scientific knowledge provided through seasonal forecasts, using serious gaming as a participatory tool. Our serious game, Farm or Fallow, simulates farming livelihoods based on insights from participatory research conducted in the Alazani River Basin, Georgia. The game is grounded in the climate service co-created to meet the needs of stakeholders in the Georgian Living Lab (as part of the I-CISK project) to ensure that the game is as realistic a representation as possible. This interactive framework enables users to engage with climate services that they have co-created while reflecting on their decision-making processes.
We present preliminary findings from gameplay sessions involving diverse climate service users, including stakeholders from the Georgian Living Lab. The study investigates how participants combine different knowledge systems during the playing of the game, and whether the experience enhances their ability to articulate the value of climate services from a user-centred perspective. These findings provide also insights into how serious gaming can be utilised as tool to enhance user capacities to understand, interpret and use weather and climate information, thereby encouraging uptake of climate services.
How to cite: Rastogi, S., Werner, M., and van Cauwenbergh, N.: Combining Knowledges and Co-Imagining the Use of Climate Services through Serious Gaming, EGU General Assembly 2025, Vienna, Austria, 27 Apr–2 May 2025, EGU25-17653, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu25-17653, 2025.
