EarthGames updates all of its previous projects on the various app stores whenever needed, so we expect this game to be useful for many years. We continue to update even the original games we made like Climate Quest, which was created in 2015. All of our games are still functioning and many are used each quarter in UW classes.
Looking forward, the class ATMS: 495 EarthGames Studio, can continue to use Sustainability Action Arena as a teaching tool by having students update the ‘current events and groups’ in the game. This benefits EarthGames Studio by having simple and ongoing tasks for students, and it benefits UW Sustainability to have an app continuously updated with current events.
Previous CSF Project (and its impact) and Other Prior Experience
EarthGames developed a game called 60 Second Sustainability in 2018 with funding from CSF. The game had 21 different levels, which each introduced the work of a different environmental RSO. Our staff member, a UW student at the time, Rivkah Parent first worked with EarthGames doing art for these games, and learned programming and game design as well. The game was successful in communicating the mission of the RSOs in a concise manner, and is still used in orientation and classes at UW to introduce environmental RSOs.
This project was how our employee at EarthGames first learned to develop games in 2018, through a grant from CSF. The importance of having an experienced designer at the start of a project is essential to its success, and once that foundation is laid, the learning becomes endless. EarthGames, and lead designer, Rivkah Parent, has experience developing high-quality, visually appealing, fun games in a short time and on a limited budget. Our team as a whole has included programmer/artist students from UW Seattle and UW Bothell who have taken the EarthGames Studio independent study course or volunteered, and two faculty liaison with a strong track record of supporting student outreach and engagement. EarthGames has released 13 apps to the Apple and Google Play app stores, and our itch.io page.
The primary difference between Sustainability Action Arena and 60 Second Sustainability is the learning goals. While 60SS focused on RSOs that students could join, SAA will focus on the quantitive targets for sustainability on campus. We see the two projects as complementary, in that learning about the targets will inspire more participation in green RSOs, and vice versa.