Fun offline

25 : 04 : 2016 Yibu : Frog Design : Frog Labs

Shanghai – A new iPad game by design agency Frog encourages children to put down their device and play in the real world.

  • Yibu is designed as a modular platform that can offer a variety of different games that connect to the sensing toys
  • The toys gather real-time environmental data that influences the digital game
Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai
Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai
Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai
Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai Yibu by Frog Design inc, Shanghai

It might seem counter-intuitive to design an iPad game that doesn’t work by tapping, swiping or speaking, but Yibu uses the device as a way of persuading children to engage with their surroundings.

Information from five wooden blocks embedded with sensors – wind, sound, direction, temperature and light – influences the environment on the screen. To save a polar bear from rising temperatures and melting ice, children have to be creative in using the blocks, for example by lowering the temperature by placing the appropriate sensor in the fridge.

This merging of the physical and digital worlds in children’s play is something that toymaker Fischer-Price predicted we will see more of in its concept video The Future of Parenting.

The Big Picture

Toy and game manufacturers such as Primo are using analogue experiences to teach children the fundamentals of coding, which will enable them to create amazing digital creations. Find out more about youngsters who code in our Generation I tribe.

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