“Drain of Thrones”
Educational game

Genie develops an educational game to teach households how to prevent waterway pollution.

Background

Friends of Bradford’s Becks are a group of Bradford based residents and interested ecologists who are keen to see the eventual restoration of the Bradford Beck river system.

In October 2023 they sought proposals for an educational game or display to educate on How NOT to cause pollution within Bradford’s Becks.

The brief was to create a fun interactive display or game for audiences aged 10+ to engage with at science fairs, schools and outdoor events. The goal being to illustrate how some home waste disposal choices pollute our waterways in a fun and educational way.

The majority of houses in the UK are connected to either of two sewer systems:
• Combined sewers (the older system – up to 1960ish)
• Separated sewers. (the newer system)

Both systems have potential to cause pollution when blockages result in discharge of untreated waste into our waterways. Blockages are typically caused by a build up of materials that will not break down in the sewer system.

Items such as nappies, tampons, ear buds and even human hair often combine with cooking oil and ghee to create blockages in the form of “fatbergs”.

Drain of Thrones educational table board game

Informing the public on what can and cannot go down the toilet and drain formed the basis of my solution.

My successful tender proposal, “Drain of Thrones,” is a large, foldable tabletop game. The name is a playful pun on the famous fantasy drama television series “Game of Thrones”

Players can choose from six heroes: Aunty Poolushun, Inspector Homes, Miss Connection, Professor P, Akeela and Beck representing a broad demographic of the Bradford area. Their mission is to inspire, educate and inform throughout the game play.

Additionally, the game highlights sources of pollution that a household may not be aware of – such as misconnected appliances and even toilets connected to a street drain.

How the game works

Each player chooses one of the six character tokens to play the game. All players roll the dice to start the game and the highest number goes first (and so on).

Players rolls the dice to advance along the river to the number rolled. As the players travel along the route they will encounter a “Throne of Wonder” strategically placed at several positions in order to influence game duration.

Should a player land on a “Throne of Wonder”  they are asked a question from the stack of river pollution themed question cards.

The question cards have multiple choice answers (similar to Trivial Persuit). Answer the question correctly and advance three spaces … get it wrong and go back three spaces. The first person to reach the Humber bridge (representing the confluence of the river Aire and the river Ouse) is the winner.

Production specifications

The game table, question cards, dice and character tokens are designed and produced to withstand robust game play indoors and out.

The table graphic is made from a tough scratch and water proof material. The table folds flat and packs away into a padded bag for safe storage when not in use.

The question cards are printed onto FSC card with a matt laminate to both faces to protect against water damage.

The player tokens are printed in full colour on recycled foamex and all the items are printed with UV safe inks to prevent fading over time.