March 2, 2015 – For the past year, Red Butte Garden has been collaborating on a pilot program with Missouri Botanical Garden, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, San Diego Zoo and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to create interactive, location-based, augmented-reality games through funding from the National Science Foundation.
Using GPS-enabled smart phones and MIT’s TaleBlazer software (taleblazer.org), the Garden has created five free-choice games that allow players to embark on science adventures related to conservation, ethnobotany, and other topics while interacting with the Garden grounds.
The games encourage guests to interact with the Garden in a new and exciting way. Red Butte Garden’s suite of TaleBlazer games allows guests to dig deeper and learn from their surroundings. Rather than offering a standard tour, each game teaches information about actual Garden plants and landmarks through a unique storyline.
Interested in playing? Red Butte Garden’s TaleBlazer games are available free of charge and available for download on any GPS-enabled tablet or smartphone beginning on March 2 with the release of the first two games: “Garden Tales” and “Lady Nightshade and the Invaders.”
Search for TaleBlazer in either the Google Play Store or App Store to download the free TaleBlazer app. Games are intended for children aged 10 to 13, but even younger children are able to play with the help of an adult.
Games will be released throughout the spring on the following schedule:
- March 2, 2015
- “Garden Tales” – Interact with Chauncey, Red Butte Garden’s resident gnome, to learn Garden etiquette and practice TaleBlazer basics in this tutorial game.
- “Lady Nightshade and the Invaders” – Assemble an army to defeat the evil Lady Nightshade and her invading warriors. Learn about native plants and invasive species issues while exploring Red Butte Garden’s Water Pavilion area in this fantasy adventure game.
- April 1, 2015
- “Water Games” — Learn about water conservation while increasing the water supply to your home village of Trickleton as you explore the Children’s Garden.
- May 1, 2015
- “Garden Fresh!” – Help your restaurant earn a five-star rating by selecting the correct garden fresh ingredients. Play the role of an assistant chef and help fill customers’ orders by correctly identifying plants in Red Butte Garden.
- June 1, 2015
- “Captain Bonneville” – Find Captain Bonneville’s missing treasure. Test your navigation skills and geographic knowledge while exploring Red Butte Garden’s Natural Area.
For more information about Red Butte Garden’s TaleBlazer games, please visit redbuttegarden.org/taleblazer.