Mission H2o, an online game developed by Swinburne University students and staff, has received two prestigious design awards.
The game, which is themed around water conservation, recently won two Communicator Awards: the Gold Award of Excellence (Interactive - Green/Eco Friendly) and the Silver Award of Distinction (Interactive - Children's Audience).
Created in the style of a pop-up book, Mission H2o is the result of a collaboration between Swinburne's multimedia design department and non-profit organisation, the savewater! Alliance.
It features the Wilson family - Barry Buckets, Barbara Bubbles, Chelsea Sprinkles, Johnny Hydro and Nana Flo - who guide players through eight sub-games contained within various parts of their home.
Players can test their knowledge about water conservation through quizzes and other interactive games.
With each leak that is plugged and each tub of bath water that is recycled, your score increases.
The game is the work of 80 third year students and five lecturers from the university's multimedia design program, and represents more than 18,000 hours of research and development.
"There are other games in the market that try to teach players different things however I haven't seen anything like this in the water conservation area.
It's great for the target age group to interact and play with," said Swinburne multimedia design lecturer James Marshall.