Back in October the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Smithsonian Institution held a National Climate Game Jam at 11 sites across the U.S in an effort to educate people about the effects and causes of climate change.
Teams from each site submitted their entry by creating a short video. These were then reviewed by panels of judges from the game design world and from climate science, who, just under two months later, have announced the winners.
Reef Revival, a role-playing game built around a coral farmer working to restore a coral reef damaged by climate change, took first place in the adult division, while ClimateQuest, an 8-bit title that asks players to manage climate disasters took the top prize in the college division.
Flood Prevention, which does exactly what it says on the tin, was named the winner in the high school division, and finally, Diaper Cow, a game about finding ways to decrease the methane emissions of cows, was the winning entry in the K-8 division.
The winners have been invited to showcase their games at two public events at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C.
Here’s the full list of this year’s climate game jam finalists and winners from each division.
K-8 Division
First Place – Diaper Cow and other minigames
Second Place – Energy Farm
High School Division
Winner for Best Digital Game – Flood Prevention
Winner for Best Board/Card Game – Azure Skies
Winner for Best Paper Prototype – Climate Carey
College Division
First Place – ClimateQuest
Second Place – Climate Conquerors
Third Place (tie) – Countdown
Third Place (tie) – Manta Day
Adult Division
First Place – Reef Revival
Second Place – Three Degrees
Third Place – AdaptNation
Fourth Place – Owl Together