New Blog

Blog posts will be updated at this site from here on out

http://cellcraftgame.com/blog/

thanks!

Gameplay

So I talked a bit about how CellCraft goes about teaching, so I should talk a bit about game play.

Our story is primed when we learn that a planet of platypuses is doomed! A few biologists decide that the best way to save the species is to embed their genome into a simple amoeba, and send it to a new planet. But space and new planets can be a dangerous place, and creating a cell that can thrive is a tricky task!

This is where the player comes in, taking control of the newly born cell in a petri dish. You have the ability to cast out pseudopods, and explore. Over time you gain more and more organelles. Mitochondria to boost your ATP production, ribosomes to make enzymes and proteins. Organelles decay over time, producing free radicals that must be neutralized. Eventually they stop working and must be broken down by lysosomes, and newer ones must be divided.

Viruses are often tossed into the petri dish to toughen up your cell, and it's up to you to defeat them! Make defensins to toughen up your membrane, or slicer enzymes to attack viruses head on! Several virus types exist and each have different properties.

Videos!

Here's some stuff for you guys to watch if you don't like facebook! Below is the link to a trailer,

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTz-1T9sntY

there are more videoes on the facebook of press stuff.

You can also check out some screen shots here! http://cellcraftgame.com/blog/

What is cellcraft?

Some of you might be wondering exactly what CellCraft is. Allow me to enlighten you. CellCraft is a way of brining the content of a biology text book alive for students to see themselves. CellCraft is a flash game, but it's also more than that. It's a way to see what we as humans will never see. Cells are so small, that the average size of one is 10 micrometers. That means we are 1e^6 times bigger (100000 times bigger). Though we can see cells through a microscope, it is difficult to see the world inside. Cells are a world bursting with life, with molecules constantly fighting their way through bombardments of water, neutralizing free radicals, recycling old organelles and making new ones, gathering the immense amount of fuel needed to provide energy, and fighting off threats. CellCraft is a game that allows students to not only watch this amazing world, but live it. Placing the player in control of what the cell does allows him or her to direct the development of the cell as they see fit. Hopefully, the cell will flourish :) CellCraft is not just a game, it's a scientifically accurate game. Want to make an enzyme? OK, first you must gather all of the molecules necessary to make it, produce mRNA, send it to the ribosome, move the ribosomes to the endoplasmic reticulum and then the protein is produced. All of this unfolds on screen, for the student to see. Tutorial windows explain all of these processes, and carefully written encyclopedia articles are present for every molecule in the game. CellCraft is a game, but it's also a great tool. It teaches and explains in ways that textbooks simply can't, and excites interest in the wonderful world of science!