Riviver----Revive a polluted river!

A hand-drawn educational game designed to teach kids how to recognize and deal with water pollution.

Overview

Type: Educational Video Game / Environmental Science

Role: Lead Artist, Scrum Master

Tools: Procreate, Godot (team), Google Sheets, GitHub

Team: 6-person interdisciplinary team

Exhibition: Playtested at Macdonough Elementary School Carnival

Course: IDEA350 – Computational Media: Design and Development

Riviver is a collection of three short environmental puzzle minigames designed to teach river ecology, waste sorting, and erosion control to elementary students. The game uses quick decision making, visual clarity, and playful feedback to help young players understand environmental systems through hands-on interaction.

Click the link to check the game website and download it for free!

https://team-fow.github.io/riviver/

As Lead Artist and Scrum Master, I balanced visual direction, asset creation, and team management—supporting both creative identity and production momentum.

Background & Inspiration

The project began with field research at a local elementary school. We interviewed and observed 2nd–5th graders, noting their play patterns, visual preferences, and learning habits.

From this research we learned that:

kids prefer bright, friendly art styles,
mixed strategy + action gameplay keeps them engaged,
they need clear visual signifiers to understand cause and effect,
and they strongly prefer human protagonists over “alien” themes.

Using these insights, we designed Reviver as a kid-centered environmental experience that balances fun with meaningful learning.

My Role

Lead Artist – Visual Direction & Asset Production

Created the visual language of the world, adhering to research-based accessibility principles
Drew all environment tiles, world-map elements, UI icons, and level-select assets
Illustrated the trash categories, water-diversion components, and erosion-control elements
Produced all final in-game sprites and iterated visual feedback cues (color flashes, highlights, particle moments)
Designed physical items (stickers & 3D-printed fish tokens) for school playtesting

Scrum Master – Production Coordination & Team Leadership

Facilitated weekly sprint planning and task breakdowns
Managed the major reboot after overscope, helping the team pivot to a workable vertical slice
Created and maintained the final Gantt chart, task lists, and production pipeline
Led production sessions
Improved communication and accountability across designers and programmers
Ensured consistent asset integration into the Godot pipeline

Process

At the beginning of the semester, our team aimed to build a full adventure-style game with multiple systems, characters, and environmental mechanics. After several weeks, it became clear from our weekly status reports and early prototypes that the scope was far beyond what a six-person student team could finish within the timeline. Based on this assessment, we held a structured discussion and decided to reset the project’s direction. Instead of producing one large game, we shifted to three tight, self-contained minigames, each focused on a single environmental concept. This decision immediately reduced unnecessary complexity and allowed the team to redirect energy into clarity and polish.

After the reboot, production moved much more efficiently. As Scrum Master, I organized the new taskboards and helped sequence work so that art, design, and programming stayed in sync. Each member owned one minigame, while I maintained visual consistency across them as Lead Artist. With clearer goals and smaller, testable chunks, the team iterated faster, responded to playtest feedback more effectively, and hit all major milestones. By the end of the semester, Reviver became one of the most complete and stable projects in the class, with all three minigames playable, visually cohesive, and ready for exhibition at the Macdonough Elementary Carnival.

Outcome

At the Macdonough Carnival showcase, kids gravitated toward the game’s bright visuals and quick challenges. Teachers responded positively to the integration of environmental science concepts, noting the game’s clarity and creativity.