Dione

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ZMnzfNqNJhw-h_qUkyMu78PPQQ3cjw0C/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=113389802809459857405&rtpof=true&sd=true

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1_efHHXKkc43A6OpHDR-XAH7PCtf1x1Zv/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=113389802809459857405&rtpof=true&sd=true

Mission: “Bringing space closer to the next generation and their teachers''

The problem:

• Young people today think that space is "rocket science" and way too complicated. 
• They look to Apollo for its glory days, but Star Trek is still very far away.

Our solution:

• Make an educational game where you can be a space explorer using today's technology.
• No more Science Fiction but more Science Fact! Space technology has a lot of potentials and has advanced significantly since the space age. 
• It has the power to inspire players to become the next space explorers. 

The game:

A digital board game that you can play online. 

It is designed for a group of players who wish to play together whether they are physically in the same place or not. The goal is to be the first that fulfills his/her mission and comes back to Earth.

This game has 2 options: 

• Single game mode: play individually in this game against your friends - One player will begin a new game, invite all other players and press start. 
• Team game mode: create 2 or more teams and each person will have a specific role in their team.

Description of the game:

You start by choosing your mission: map alien worlds, mine resources, find a colony site or search for life, etc. Then you will get the resources and build your spaceship. Gather fuel points by answering quiz questions and lift off! 

Moving the spaceship to one celestial body requires fuel points. After you have visited the destination, you need to come back to Earth.

You can get more points by answering quizzes. The questions are sorted according to your mission type and for each right question, you get fuel points, resources, or extra perks. You can use these resources to trade with other players or modify your spaceship when back on Earth. 

During every mission, you will have a guide to tell you amazing things about it. After every quiz, you have a link to learn more. This makes learning fun and engaging. 

The quizzes will have different levels of difficulty depending on the mission you have chosen and depending on the type of spaceship. For every question, you can get hints, and sometimes you will need to use your knowledge and skills to solve practical problems. 

Examples

• Easy questions:

What is the natural satellite of Earth?

Is Pluto a planet?

How many planets are in the solar system?

• Medium questions:

What is the Moon’s gravitational acceleration?

What is Venus named after?

How many moons does Jupiter have?

• Hard questions:

How long is a year on Mercury?

Does every black hole contain a singularity?

What is the temperature of the Sun’s core?

• Practical questions :

In 4 Earth years how many times does Mercury go around of the Sun?

How much do you weigh on the Moon if on Earth you weigh 120kg?

Questions can vary in difficulty and rewards. We will use the resources NASA has provided us to make up questions and problems. They will also be updated with new information. This keeps the game up to date. 

Example of mission

Map objects in the solar system - You will learn about the surface features of different objects and what they are made of. Do they have an atmosphere? What is it made of? Do they have clouds, mountains, rivers? Can liquid water be present? What are the forces that have shaped the surface? What instruments are used for mapping? There are many strange features found in our solar system that are not found on Earth. 

Search for life - You will learn about Astrobiology, Exobiology, Cosmobiology, the origin and evolution of life, the birth and evolution of the stars, Prebiotic Evolution, Early Evolution of Life.

Vehicles in space - You will learn about vehicles that are used in space: rockets, spaceships, rovers, drones, satellites. What do you need to build a rocket? 

Team game mode: 

Instead of just one person on the spacecraft, you will have an entire team with roles like a pilot, engineer, biologist, or medic. A game master will be supervising play. This mode is intended to be played by large groups like classrooms of students. The teacher can be the game master and can modify the quizzes and even some of the game rules like in Dungeons and Dragons. This adds a role to play to the game.  

What is more interesting in this game mode is that the players can be stolen or put on pause by the other team. To recover or to reactivate the member, the team will have the challenge to do. 

You might ask how this game is different from Kerbal Space Programme, Super Mario Galaxy, Spore, or Space Quest?

Well…

The original Space Quest from the 90s was an adventure game set in an SF environment. Our new take will still have humans at the center, but with the difference that it’s a quest for knowledge. 

Factual accuracy is very important for our game.

We want to make it an educational game that teaches people about what we can do with today’s technology and not just science fiction. 

The main character of the game is human (me, you...our colleagues, friends)!

And

the Team Game Mode brings fun to the entire classroom. 

What we want to achieve:

Finish a prototype and playtest it to make a balanced and fun game. 

Find a way to promote it in schools and sell it on Steam. 

Make expansions to exit the solar system and save humanity!

And of course: 

Take over the world.

We used the following information:

• about our solar system to chart possible destinations for our players' spaceships

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/solar-system/our-solar-system/overview/

• about space flight to chart out possible trajectories for our spaceships

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/basics/chapter4-1/

• images and information about various objects in the solar system to develop artwork and quizzes that are central to the game. 

https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/jupiter/overview/

• map services to create customized maps for our spaceships

https://trek.nasa.gov/#features&show=trek-map-services

• The astrobiology resource is used to quiz players about how life might survive in space or other extreme environments.  

https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/education/alp/how-to/

Space Apps is an amazing experience both enjoyable and educational.

Besides the scientific information provided by NASA resources, there is a great amount of knowledge provided by each member of the Team: everyone comes and shares impressive experience and knowledge.

Dione Team was built on the spot, on the event day! but ...the result was favorable and even if we didn’t know each other well, we managed to resolve setbacks and challenges. The challenge was chosen unanimously by the 4 members, all of us being inspired by the scope and the mission of the challenge: creating a game that will educate! Gamification of learning is a powerful tool that motivates students all over the world.

We would like to thank the local organizers and mentors in Bucharest; they are professionals, supportive, and willing to help any time. 

• Resources provided by NASA for the challenge 
• Miro
• Design Thinking Concepts and Steps 
• Google Doc
• Preview App
• Discord
• Microsoft Office

#application #education #game #Space #future

This project has been submitted for consideration during the Judging process.