Murphy's Toast Games

Factsheet

Developer:
Murphy's Toast Games
Based in Barcelona and Palma

Release date:
Fall 2018

Download:
Google Play
Apple App Store

Website:
https://www.murphystoastgames.com/sheet.php?p=ancestors

Regular Price:
-

Description

How did our ancestors live a million years ago? How was the landscape that they perceived? Were they similar to our species? These questions are the starting point of Ancestors: Stories of Atapuerca, a video game for iOS and Android devices where the player leads a human group within the region of Atapuerca. Each level of the game is a story about the ancestors that an Elder tells to a Homo Sapiens clan one night by the campfire. On each story the player will meet heroes, experience legends and explore myths about the origins of our species. Ancestors integrates the most recent archaeological findings of 2 species (Homo Antecessor and Homo Neanderthal) to portrait a scientifically accurate vision of Prehistory. This depiction covers all aspects of the simulation such as fauna, technology and landscape through a unique fusion between learning and game mechanics. The innovative game design has been created to offer an engaging interactive experience of the past to players. The collaboration between game creators and archaeologists from the University of Barcelona also aims to foster critical reflection on common misconceptions of Prehistory such as the role played by gender and age or the primitive appearance of these human groups.

History

Ancestors is part of ATAEVE project which is an innovative initiative of public outreach of the Digital Humanities supported by the BBVA foundation and led by the research group DIDPATRI – Universitat de Barcelona. The aim of ATAEVE is to promote the use of video games as a learning tool that allows the player to experience the past through computer simulation. The case study of the project is one of the most iconic archaeological sites of European prehistory: the UNESCO World heritage site of Atapuerca. ATAEVE has united a multidisciplinary team of experts from fields as diverse as archaeology, didactics and game design with the common goal of creating a game where scientific knowledge improves the experience of the player through engaging game design. Ancestors is freely available on portable devices and it is localized to English and Spanish. The game has been developed by Murphy's Toast Games, an independent development studio that creates transformative gaming experiences to foster scientific thinking and curiosity about our past.

Features

• NEANDERTHAL OR ANTECESSOR? - Recreate 4 stories of 2 human species with different traits and technology
• A CHALLENGING ENVIRONMENT - Explore the landscape of the oldest prehistorical site in Europe
• LEARN WHILE YOU PLAY - Animals, tools, appearance… Ancestors is a scientifically accurate portrayal of Prehistory designed through a close collaboration between game designers and archaeologists
• EASY TO PLAY, HARD TO MASTER - Start playing Ancestors in a matter of minutes thanks to the in-game tutorial; improve your strategy if you want to increase your scores

Ancestors: Stories of Atapuerca Credits

Xavier Rubio-Campillo
Director, game design and programming

Jaume Mayans
Game Design, Artist

Maria Yubero
QA Testing

Daniela Kropeit
Graphic design

Edu Samper and Kristofer Montenegro
Music

Contact

Inquiries
contact@murphystoastgames.com

Twitter
http://twitter.com/MToastGames

Facebook
http://facebook.com/murphystoast