The new RoboTrax games develop children’s collaboration skills and strategic thinking, and furthermore, they provide a taste of what it means to program.
WizeFloor’s games have so far been characterized by inviting play, where children are encouraged to use their whole body in interaction with various motion games projected onto the floor. We have chosen to challenge this mindset in our latest gaming universe: RoboTrax!
Rather than using their bodies as game pieces on the interactive floor, players control an animated character by using projected buttons on the floor, or a Bee-Bot, a small physical robot with buttons. The animated or physical character is navigated through a maze and along the way, players can steer towards items that award points to collect, while also avoiding obstacles.
The difficulty level of the games can be adjusted according to the players’ skills. While younger children can receive instant feedback on their instructions, older children can explore the programming aspects of the games.
“This game requires planning. He also likes to play Stratego, so I thought it would be a good fit. Let’s see if the strategy is the right one."
In the RoboTrax games designed for school-aged children, players can pre-program a longer sequence of actions, which is then executed. Children must demonstrate strategic thinking, teamwork, and communication skills to plan a longer route, but with the many interactive aspects of RoboTrax, motivation remains high. This way, children get a taste of what it means to program while engaging in social and physical play.
The RoboTrax game series will be released on April 10th, consisting of the games “To the Moon”, “Get Home Safe”, and “Mouse Maze”.
Many thanks to Ole Caprani from Aarhus University, Sara Petrat-Melin from Dokk1 and the many children and parents, who have helped to develop and test the game.
