Playtime accounts for one of the most critical learning periods for children, as they learn how to interact and socialize with their playmates.
Ballbit Adventure is a game that provides a collaborative environment for children to communicate, cooperate, and empathize through solving challenges in an interactive maze. Each player must drive a robotic ball and work together to complete different tasks that would ultimately lead them to the finish line.
Through the format of a physical racing game, Ballbit Adventure hopes to show the value of face-to-face play experience to counterbalance the disconnected online interactions that children have with video games.
Project for Stefania Druga's "Ai smart toys" class. Made in collaboration with Charlie Zhang
Ballbitvator
Flipper station
Co-op station
Detachment station
Ballbit gate
Key station
Finish line
Adventure Modules
Ballbitvator
An elevator for the Ballbits to travel between levels.
Ballbit flipper
The flipper allows the Ballbit casing to adjust orientation (for attachments)
Ballbit gate
Each Ballbit gate requires a special key to unlock
Module release station
This module is used to detached the collaboration module.
Key station
This module is used to detached the collaboration module.
Picking up the keys
Different keys are required to open Ballbit gates.
Ballbit casing
A shell for the Ballbits to wear. These casings can attach to different modules (magnetically through the metal strip that is not shown in the render).
Parallel maneuver module
A Attachment module that connects two Ballbits together to perform certain task as a team.
Keys
Keys can open Ballbit gates. Each gate requires a different key. Players can attach keys in two different orientation.
Example setup
There are many ways players can setup their Ballbit adventure! Here is one example.
Process
The following section contains some process photos of earlier versions of Ballbit adventure. For more detailed documentation click
Ballbit adventure V1 with user testing.
Ballbit adventure V2 testing the Arduino powered contraptions (hover the mouse over the video to play).
Ballbit adventure V2 user testing at Lexington Montessori School.
Ballbit adventure V3 assembling the final prototype.
At CHI PLAY 2019
Goofy process video.
Thank you!