Image credit – Hal Furneaux-Gotch
Research and games may not be two things many would pair together, yet serious games are increasingly prevalent in Higher Education. Serious games are games whose primary purpose is not solely amusement but rather to inform or raise awareness, for example. These may be incorporated into education, or research and engagement.
Over the past year, we have had the opportunity to highlight, and support colleagues from across the University who have found their own ways to explore this connection between research and games. The following examples show how games can bring research to life.
Engaged and Participatory Research Fund – 2025-6
Some Engaged and Participatory Research Fund awardees used their funding to incorporate serious games into their engaged research. Peter Lefort, of the University’s Green Futures Network, took the Positive Tipping Points Toolkit to groups underrepresented in climate research engagement across Bristol and Winchester. In Bristol, Shalyn Wilkins facilitated workshops where participants developed a game which invited people to explore the role of play in learning and in leading social transformation, in the context of climate change.
Likewise, Dr Amy Cutler, formerly Lecturer in English and Creative Writing, and Caroline Walter, Head of the University’s Heritage Collections partnered with specialists at Harwell Restoration, to develop a participatory, educational training game that helped both voluntary and paid staff in heritage organisations care for their collections in the event of a crisis. University of Exeter MA and PhD students served as main design leaders for the game development, enabling them to explore the role of interactive storytelling in new professional contexts.
Speaker Series: What the Pharma?
We welcomed Dr Mark Carew, Senior Lecturer in Clinical and Biomedical Sciences, for an online talk on his experience developing and licensing the pedagogical card game, ‘What the Pharma?’. In his talk, he shared insights from throughout the project, including his experience of working with game developers, and navigating the complex decision-making process in designing a game that is both accurate, and entertaining. Staff can watch the talk at PER Speaker Series – Mark Carew Meeting Recording.mp4., or you read our blog post: PER Speaker Series with Dr Mark Carew.
First Thursdays: Take a Trip to Antarctica
This summer welcomed First Thursdays to Exeter’s social scene. Following similar models in Baltimore and Philadelphia, and brought to Exeter by a local resident, the scheme was delivered by InExeter on the first Thursday of June, July, August, and September. This welcomed visitors to Exeter’s Gandy Street for late-night shopping, talks, food and more.
As part of the August event, Geography researchers Dr Anne Le Brocq and Ellie Cook brought a flavour of the Antarctic to Chococo. Through a series of 3D posters, Antarctic top trumps, and Dr Le Brocq’s ‘Ice Flows’ video game, visitors could explore the research behind Antarctic ice sheets – while cooling down with Chococo’s gelato! If you’d like to play the game for yourself, or find out more, you can visit Ice Flows – A game about ice flows in the Antarctic.
SHELL YEAH! A Research Gameshow
Bringing even more games to First Thursdays, we took our research gameshow experience to the September event. ‘SHELL YEAH! A Prawn Farm Challenge’ was designed by workshop facilitator and illustrator, Hannah Mumby, and creative researcher, Ella Harris, drawing upon University of Exeter research expertise in sustainable aquaculture and UK prawn farming. A fully booked audience participated in this pilot event, which aimed to determine how well the gameshow format helped people to learn about complex research, and the science behind it. More information about this, and other University of Exeter contributions to First Thursdays, can be found here: Taking Part in Exeter’s First ‘First Thursdays’! – Public Engagement with Research (PER) at the University of Exeter.
New Level Unlocked: Discovering the Story of Video Games
To round off this series, ‘New Level Unlocked: Discovering the Story of Video Games’ turned audience’s attention to games themselves, looking at the video games we play, and why they mean so much to us. Featuring expertise from across the south west, the panel talk and Q and A invited audiences to Exeter Phoenix for a discussion on everything from video game nostalgia, to how games tell a story, and what they might look like in the future. Researchers Dr Rob Sherman (University of Exeter), Dr James Sweeting (University of Plymouth), Professor James Newman (Bath Spa University), and Drs Amy Cutler and Richard Cole (University of Bristol), were joined by moderator Ruth Mariner for this insightful one-off event. Listen to the talk at ‘New Level Unlocked: Discovering the Story of Video Games’ Panel Talk Recording : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive, or find a partial transcript at New Level Unlocked – Discovering the Story of Video Games (partial transcript).pdf.
The possibilities for bringing together games and research are endless, and these are only a snapshot of what is on offer. From hosting the 2026 Playposium, to the work of the Innoplay team, serious games and gameful learning are happening across the University.
If you are a University of Exeter researcher, and would like to connect with others interested in serious games, contact per@exeter.ac.uk to join our community of practice.