Play, Learn & Discover

Here are all our free educational games and online citizen science projects together in one place! You can play these to learn about biology, evolution and other scientific topics, as well as helping researchers carry out scientific experiments and discover more about how the world works.

This page is currently being updated for home schooling and people needing to isolate because of covid-19. Please let us know your ideas on how to structure these activities to provide better teaching materials. We have more games on their way.

The #wasplove game

Find out how hard life is as a wasp, and far from being pests - how good they are for the world. Play / More info

Keywords: insects, conservation, pollination, female protagonist

Made with: Dr Seirian Sumner, University College London, Natural Environment Research Council funded. Currently live at the Eden Project.

Viruscraft

Build a world and mutate a virus to take over an evolving population of host lifeforms. Play / More info.

Keywords: evolution, epidemiology, viruses

Made with: Dr Ben Longdon, University of Exeter, Wellcome Trust funded.

Crab game

A citizen science game where we need your crab hunting skills to tell us about how their camouflage has evolved in the rockpools and beaches of Cornwall. Commissioned by Natural History Museum London. Play / More info.

Keywords: marine biology, camouflage, evolution, cornwall, citizen science

Made with: Natural History Museum London, and Prof Martin Stevens, University of Exeter.

Cricket tales

We need your help to watch small videos of wild crickets in their natural habitat and record the things they get up to, so we can measure how different their lives and personalities are. Play / More info.

Keywords: insects, behavior, climate change, citizen science

Made with: Prof Tom Tregenza, University of Exeter, Natural Environment Research Council funded. Currently live at the Eden Project.

Dazzlebug

Catch fast moving critters and see how they evolve their patterns to evade capture by their human predators. Play / More info.

Keywords: patterns, camouflage, evolution, citizen science

Made with: Dr. Laura Kelley and Dr. Anna Hughes, University of Exeter, Biotechnology ad Biological Science Research Council funded.

Hungry birds: butterfly catching game

Watch evolution happen while you are playing as edible species of butterfly evolve to mimic a toxic species you are trying to avoid. Play / More info.

Keywords: insects, patterns, camouflage, evolution

Made with: Prof Chris Jiggins, Cambridge University, made for the Royal Society Summer Exhibition

Redking

Make music from a host/parasite co-evolution simulation. Record interesting patterns for the researchers to investigate. Play / More info.

Keywords: evolution, music, epidemiology, disease, citizen science

Made with: Prof. Mike Boots and Dr. Ben Ashby, University of Exeter

Egglab

Hunt for camouflaged eggs that have evolved to be difficult to find, based on previous players. Play / More info.

Keywords: birds, patterns, camouflage, evolution, citizen science

Made with: Prof. Martin Stevens, University of Exeter, funded by the Biotechnology ad Biological Science Research Council funded

Where is that nightjar?

Have your predatory skills tested by hunting for cryptically camouflaged nightjar birds. Play / More info

Keywords: birds, patterns, camouflage, evolution, citizen science

Made with: Prof. Martin Stevens, University of Exeter, funded by the Biotechnology ad Biological Science Research Council funded

Where is that nest?

This time, hunt for their nest sites from different locations in Africa. Play / More info

Keywords: birds, patterns, camouflage, evolution, citizen science

Made with: Prof. Martin Stevens, University of Exeter, funded by the Biotechnology ad Biological Science Research Council funded

Bumper crop

In this prototype board game conversion for Android devices, find out what life is like running a farm in rural India. Play / More info.

Keywords: farming, India, educational game, mobile

Made with: Misha Myers. Falmouth University, funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council

4 shaft frame loom simulation

Create patterns by controlling the warping of a 4 shaft frame loom. Play / More info.

Keywords: weaving, textiles, mathematics, simulation

Made with: Ellen Harlizius-Klück and Alex McLean, funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council and European Research Council.

Tablet loom simulation

A little experimental livecoding language for weaving a tablet loom. Play / More info

Keywords: weaving, textiles, mathematics, simulation

Made with: Ellen Harlizius-Klück and Alex McLean, funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council and European Research Council.