Wheelie Pop
Hyper casual applied game
Cliënt
Leerlingen
Teenagers age 10-14
Type
Applied Game, Mobile
Jaar
2017 - ongoing
It sounds contradictory: A mobile game that helps teens resist smartphone impulses while cycling.
It's not hard to imagine how using your phone while cycling is a bad idea. Being distracted increases the chances of an accident significantly. In that regard, teens are a vulnerable group as they ride their bikes daily, but generally underestimate danger.
That's why the Dutch Traffic Safety Organization (VVN) decided to do something about it. They invited us to come up with a playful learning experience that aimed to change this behavior. Our design is part of a lesson package they are already offering to schools.
It may sound contradictory, but we found the solution in the source of the problem: their phones. If teens are glued to their screens, that's where we can best reach them. And if they prefer to do something they love, like playing a game, we can use that to our advantage.
That's why we came up with Wheelie Pop. It is a casual game that is a fun solution to a serious problem.
Creating the world of WheeliePop was a lot of work, but also a lot of fun! We illustrated 4 worlds for the player to explore, each with their own unique obstacles. Through an overarching map the player unlocks all worlds and levels. On their journey players will discover a funny story: Mr Smart, an evil CEO of a phone company, hypnotizes teens to get them addicted to their phones.
Illustrated Game World
The core gameplay mechanic of WheeliePop is based on the concept of stop signal treatment (SST). During the design and development of the game we collaborated with scientists from Radboud University to make sure the SST was on point. This was challenging, but after a lot of concepting, prototyping and testing we managed to make a fun game with SST at its core.
The images above show some of our initial sketches for the game.
Concept & Wires
It's not hard to imagine how using your phone while cycling is a bad idea. Being distracted increases the chances of an accident significantly. In that regard, teens are a vulnerable group as they ride their bikes daily, but generally underestimate danger.
That's why the Dutch Traffic Safety Organization (VVN) decided to do something about it. They invited us to come up with a playful learning experience that aimed to change this behavior. Our design is part of a lesson package they are already offering to schools.
It may sound contradictory, but we found the solution in the source of the problem: their phones. If teens are glued to their screens, that's where we can best reach them. And if they prefer to do something they love, like playing a game, we can use that to our advantage.
That's why we came up with Wheelie Pop. It is a casual game that is a fun solution to a serious problem.
It sounds contradictory: A mobile game that helps teens resist smartphone impulses while cycling.
Shapers really surprised us with their enthusiasm, clever solutions and good looking designs. They are a pleasure to work with!
Ivo
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