Arts Flanders

Wireless Puppetry and The Last Continent are two serious games that use game technology to tell an educational story for children and young people. Both games were created by GameHUB, a research project that combines the research results on game development supplied by PHL University College Hasselt, the University of Hasselt, Limburg Catholic University College and Group T University College Leuven. The researchers work closely together with students and entrepreneurs.

The Wireless Puppetry game was developed for The Firmament, the home for puppet, figure and object theatre in Flanders. The game focuses on children and adolescents aged 8 to 12, who play the game in class. By means of a special motion controller the children can guide the marionette through the game, surmounting all kinds of obstacles at several playing levels, each time focussing on different types of theatre puppets. The children can construct their own marionette and dress it up to their own taste. The choices they make have an impact on how the game evolves. Once the marionette is completed, it can be released into the virtual world of figures at The Firmament exhibition centre in Mechelen (Belgium). A demo version can be found online.

The Last Continent was created for The New Belgica, which is currently building a replica of the 'Belgica', the legendary polar ship with which Adrian de Gerlache sailed to Antarctica between 1897 and 1899 to spend the winter there for the first time in history. The game is principally aimed at teenagers of between 13 and 15. By playing the game, they personally relive De Gerlache's journey: original 19th-century pictures come to life and introduce you to De Gerlache's world. Along the way, you’ll also suffer a great many setbacks... The trailer of The Last Continent can be found online.