Last year I was lucky enough to supervise a fantastic group of students for the public engagement component of their MSc in International Health and Tropical Medicine. In less than a month they came up with two fantastic games which we showcased at Oxford’s Natural History Museum as part if the now finished Bacterial World exhibition.
The games ‘Petri’ (inspired by Dobble) and ‘Transmission’ used simple game mechanisms to encourage discussion about how diseases can spread between people and medical science in general. The games had flexible rules to account for different age groups and were quick and easy to play, perfect for public engagement.
The team made a lovely video showcasing their game design process and their debut at the Natural History Museum. https://video214.com/play/9qbbUiIZJKDZybN0htzGOA/s/dark
We are hoping to develop the games further in the future and hopefully make them available for you to play at home so watch this space.
Many thanks to the team behind the games. Sam, Grace, Rachel, Nicole and Fareba.
Transmission: As a pathogen move around the card grid using different routes of transmission to make different moves and avoiding the treatments and vaccines which hamper your progress.
Oxford University Board Games & Public Engagement 