Objects: 1+ players, one ball, one goalpost
Objective: accurately and precisely hit a target on the ground
Actions: Full Throw
Ent/Edu Score: 8/6

Description: Pull back, aim, release. The classic archer will send a volley of destruction yards away. In our world, the archer is replaced by the mages who can launch volleys just like his traditional counterpart. Whether an arrow carved of wood or one conjured from the astral plane, once in our world they (mostly) have true physical behavior.

Pedagogy: Classic 2D projectile motion extended into 3D. There are no better mappings between physics and games than this! An arrow’s trajectory can be emphasized using tracers or visible vectors. It can then be viewed from all manner of angles to expose key points like constancy of horizontal velocity and vertical acceleration. It is a natural virtual counterpart to the “projectile cannons” that are part of every physics lab in every school. This activity has always been a lynchpin of our project.

Game Ideas: Not too hard to imagine warfare applications. This is to be the classic static ground level target with no strings attached. One idea is to have a blind folded event: the player must be told where the target is (by words or numbers), then set his force and angle, and when he fires, he gets to see the result of his shot. Score is by accuracy, allows a competition style atmosphere and to me seems like a pedagogical event that will not be too disruptive.

Objects: 1 or 2 players, one cue ball, 9 pool balls, six goalpost
Objective: get all pool balls to touch goalposts
Actions: Full Kick
Ent/Edu Score: 7/9

Description: 9 numbered colored pools balls are placed in a diamond formation and numerically organized on a large 2D flat table. Each corner of the table and two of Its four midsections have goalpost on them (where the pockets would be in real snookers). The player hits/throws/or kicks the cue ball (un-numbered white ball) towards the pool balls in an attempt to get a pool ball to touch a pre-designated goalpost. If it does, that ball is taken out of the game and the player whose turn it is gets a point. Alternating turns, each player can then try to hit the cue ball onto the pool balls onto the goalposts onto points.

Pedagogy: Like bowling but now with full 2D freedom. Now that we can move around the table and set any value of force and direction, we can examine more closely what momentum and collisions are all about as well as basic rebounds and bank shots give good trigonometry exposure. The use of pedagogical devices like the visible vectors and tracers will once again make a traditional game a powerful learning instrument (should the student-player want it). Easily extendable to 3D.

Game Ideas: Like several other games, a straight adaptation of this game could prove valuable to the game world. Some schools may want to use the “lab” aspect of the environment exclusively and this game is a perfect candidate. In terms of narrative or story play, this is no different than bowling... it is still throw one object onto another. The only difference is in the direction of throw where in bowling we had no choice and in billiards we have plenty.

Objects: 1+ players, Horse, Betting Bot
Objective: correctly guess which horse will win the race based on given information
Actions: Trade
Ent/Edu Score: 9/8

Description:

Pedagogy: The Betting sheet will have several different levels of information about the horses. At the lowest level, it will include which is faster. This makes betting very easy and thus not much of a payoff. Then it will include not which is faster, but which accelerates more. Also easy. At the next step, the betting sheet will include some with max velocity, others with starting acceleration... now you have to work out who will win. The returns are based on how little information you need from the Betting Bot (and thus presumably how much information you are processing as a player).

Game Ideas: The game is easily understood. You see the stats, you bet, and you get returns. The more difficult the guess, the larger the return. You could also use magic to alter a horses performance. Some houses may be magic free but in the ones that aren’t, if several people are betting on horse (say a convenient 4 to 8 horses per race) each will be doing their best to win the race. Ally with big shots and ride their luck and skill! Bet on a loser and cast a fast spell to make them win! Group play is hard to come by but we could envision a “pool” where lot’s of people pool their money for higher rewards. As well, perhaps with four people, each would only need to choose one variable to solve the

Objects: 1+ players, 10+ Differently Shaped Boxes
Objective: put the correct massive object on the correct platform
Actions: Attract/Reject Spells, Drop
Ent/Edu Score: 5/8

Description: Inspired by Indiana Jones and countless other movies, this is a typical pressure sensitive pad used for our purposes. It will be buttons to open doors, triggers on the floors, as well as other puzzle like combination. What they all have in common is that they require you to place (or remove) a force to activate. Hence stepping on one may or may not trigger it due to your weight. Think wisely of the task and the riddles presented before you and these buttons will be a piece of cake!

Pedagogy: Each button will ask for either a Mass or a Weight. This will be a simple way to reinforce the W=mg equation. Dynamically, equilibrium concepts can also be examined by requiring specific movement of the button instead of just a on/off setting.

Game Ideas: In gameplay principles, these buttons function as doors. They will obstruct progress in some direct (as in a huge button that blocks a door) or indirect (as in three small buttons that need to be pressed in sequence). Triggering them will always involve taking or putting mass on the button/platform. The leapfrog would put a nxn square array of buttons with the task of journeying from one end to the other. Each square has a weight rating which if exceeded, cause that button to be activated and you fall. The Key would be 5 buttons placed in a row next to a door. The key to open the door is to slide each of the buttons a certain way down until they match a map or a riddle. The riddle could be physics related since each button requires a certain mass setting to be correct.