SWIM THROUGH TIME WITH THE AMMONITES OF ANCIENT OCEANS, A MOBILE GAME AND AUGMENTED REALITY EXPERIENCE

We present pre-release scenes and production source material for Ancient Oceans, an upcoming casual game for mobile devices. The player is an ammonite in this third-person-swimmer, chasing prey and dodging predators through geologic time. Fun to play and easy to learn, the game offers two layers of curiosity-driven learning. First, the game will communicate that life changes through time. Each level of play presents a Period in geologic time, with iconic marine life and habitat features to match. A player that survives attacks from long-necked elasmosaurs in the Jurassic Level will move onto face giant mososaurs in the Cretaceous level, etc. Although all ammonites went extinct at the end of the Mesozoic, a player can beat the Cretaceous level to interact with penguins, whales, and iconic sharks of the Cenozoic Era. Continuing into modern seas invites the player to imagine change in life through time as a part of our ongoing ecological reality. Second, the game will introduce links between form and function in marine locomotion. The player begins the game by choosing features of their conch, including coiling geometry and ornamentation. As game play unfolds, conch shape dictates the player’s maneuverability, efficiency, and speed. The initial release of the game will base player experience on hydrodynamics experiments and simulations. Compressed conchs will offer greater speed; inflated forms greater maneuverability; and evolute forms greater cruise efficiency. Details will be added in periodic software updates to reflect new research discoveries. Importantly, game play will emphasize the functional consequences of change in form without invoking mechanisms of macroevolution. Opportunities to add features or perks to the conch will be presented with whimsy to emphasize the fun of the player’s own trial-and-error. Game levels are explicitly presented as a series of vignettes through time, without exposition or preamble. As part of this pre-release showcase, we invite comment on our creature designs, habitat structures, and biomechanic frameworks. A secondary incarnation of our work will be Augmented Reality experiences integrated into museum exhibits and visitor resources, which can be tailored to specific sites or moments in Earth history.