New online game allows players to use real objects from the Museum’s biomedical collections to care for a lovable digital creature known as ‘Gen.’
BRISTOL, UK -- National Museums Scotland has launched a new online game featuring a lovable new character created in partnership with Aardman. The game allows players to use real objects from the Museum’s biomedical collections to care for a digital creature known as Gen.
The launch coincides with the opening of 10 new galleries devoted to applied art, design, fashion, science and technology in a £14.1m project. Biomedical displays are a theme throughout the science and technology galleries, supported by funding from Wellcome.
“This is one of a number of fun ways we’re using to introduce some fairly complex ideas of medical science to a wider audience,” commented Sophie Goggins, Assistant Curator, Biomedicine at National Museums Scotland. “It’s been exciting to work with Aardman to bring Gen and our objects to life. We hope lots of people will get online to play and find it enjoyable as well as getting an insight into some of the amazing objects now on show in the National Museum of Scotland”
“Gen is a truly unique game featuring a new, loveable Aardman character,” added Laura Chilcott, Senior Digital Producer at Aardman. “This successful and enjoyable partnership with National Museums Scotland has been a great opportunity for us to use our skills both to educate a new audience, and also to enhance the museum’s biomedical displays. It also serves to further our work with the museums sector, where we have seen our technical and creative skills being a great fit!”
“It was fantastic collaborating with Aardman on this innovative project. With their passion for creating unique characters and stories with the technical expertise of the digital team we’ve created a new way to interact with the biomedical objects in the Museum collections. Everyone loves the Gen character and we’ve enjoyed the technical challenge of making the game playable across all devices,” concluded Rob Cawston, Digital Manager at National Museums Scotland.
The game makes use of innovative technology enabling people to play the game on a smart phone, tablet or a desktop computer without the need to download an app first. As well as providing a fast-paced strategy game, Gen offers online gamers of all ages the chance to learn about biomedical objects now on display in the Museum, from wooden stethoscopes and early X-ray machines to the latest cutting-edge medical technologies. As the little blobby creature falls sick players must select the right object to diagnose and then treat the Gen restoring it back to full health.
Source: Aardman
