Ecology and evolution simulation and quest design for an educational massive multiplayer online game

Abstract

In this design-based research project, I developed two simulations to be used as student tools in a massively multiplayer online game targeted at STEM education, the Radix Endeavor. I designed both the underlying agent-based model as well as the user interface for each simulation, and furthermore designed quests for my simulations for the purposes of playtesting. My final ecological prototype is able to authentically model fairly complex food webs of six or more organisms, and my final evolutionary prototype can handle complex fitness relationships between the individual traits of a single population and various environmental factors. In my thesis, I discuss the design and implementation of these simulations, the feedback we received from students, the overall effectiveness of my prototypes, and recommendations for further work.