Brain Fart

Mission

Embark on an exciting space journey alongside Zargon as he navigates his way back home. Your child can delve into diverse planets, each offering unique challenges tailored to their grade level. Traverse through solar systems, unlocking a plethora of engaging subjects and entertaining mini games for an educational twist. Are you prepared to take on the thrilling challenge that awaits? Let's start this cosmic adventure today!

Challenge:

Create a short educational mockup game suitable for kids ranging from Pre-K to 6th grade. This game is designed to be utilized by school systems as an extracurricular activity, both in the classroom and at home. The game should be easily accessible on both computers and mobile devices, ensuring flexibility for students and teachers.

My Role:

Created Brain Fart is a nostalgic game that pays homage to the classic computer games that were instrumental in teaching children fundamental skills in reading, typing, and mathematics. As a throwback to the games of my childhood, it aims to capture the essence of those educational yet entertaining experiences while presenting them in a modern and engaging format.

Think like a kid!

I asked 4 parents who have children between 1-12 years of age, what is the biggest problem you face when attempting to get your child to learn extra academics outside of school?

"The schools have different websites for the kids to do in class assignments on. Sometimes they turn that into homework, but it’s boring. My kid is in school for most of the day listening to lecture after lecture. The least these learning websites could do is make it fun or memorable for the kids to want to learn.”

“It can be boring for both kids and parents to do the work together. After a long day of work, I don’t want to sit all hours of the day with my kid bored out both minds trying to figure out how to solve equations or teach them how to write. And the kids learning apps they make nowadays are just not as attention grabbing to the kids anymore especially when they are almost teenagers.”

“The struggle to stay focus. I’ve tried negotiating with them with prizes or special requested treats just so I could get them to sit long enough to finish their homework or in class assignments they never finished.”

Delving into my research, I noticed that most of the popular children’s learning websites are not affiliated with the school systems. Approximately 70% of these platforms do not offer an app version for kids to access on the go. While these websites and apps may seem engaging, the majority of parents may find it challenging to afford additional learning resources, particularly during the summer holidays when children have ample time to revisit and reinforce their educational material.

I conducted a straightforward color test before introducing a creative theme to a group of 8 children, all aged between 3 and 11 years old. During the color test, I observed that most children were drawn to vibrant hues such as reds, blues, pinks, yellows, and oranges. During the brainstorming session, I presented 5 theme concepts that would cater to both genders. Following a quick poll among the children, it was evident that the majority favored an outer space theme, with 3 out of 8 kids showing interest. Additionally, 1 child leaned towards a storybook theme, 2 were enthusiastic about an under the sea theme, while the remaining 2 expressed their desire for a circus-inspired setting.

Drafted a detailed sitemap illustrating the content of each page with a focus on replicating the feel of the actual game environment. Created a visual roadmap that mirrors the navigation experience players will encounter when interacting with the website.

Put the Design to the Test!

Since my targeted audience is young children, I aimed to create a colorful and engaging short concept for the children to explore and enjoy the game. Utilizing the Adobe Photoshop software on the computer provides children with a hands-on experience that is both engaging and realistic.

Need More Toots!

Further research is currently underway, and we anticipate unveiling fresh, innovative designs in the near future. Stay tuned for updates on our latest developments!