APD - Week 4 - Place

Theme: Place

Method: Observe an interesting location close to my house, and then design a game that may be played in that space.

Context: Game design, with some inspiration from The Eleventh Hour by Graeme Base, and other puzzle books

Response:

Phoenix Park adventure playground used to be the host of a sign-based treasure hunt. Kids would look for colourful signs with pirate and ocean-themed clues on them that would lead them to other areas of the park, until they reached the treasure sign at the end.

Unfortunately, several of the signs have been vandalized over the years, making the game incomplete and unplayable. So for the sake of this exercise, I had a shot at designing a story/activity book that would work in conjunction with the remaining signs to make the treasure hunt possible again.

As kids explore the park, they'll find signs that point to parts of the activity book. Solving a puzzle in those pages will point them to the next sign in the park, which will point them back to the activity book, and so on and so forth until the treasure is found.

Since activity booklets are easier to print and less prone to vandalism than signs, it's possible to continue updating it should any other parts of the park fall into disrepair.