Bird Scientist Simulator is a serious game intended to teach high school audiences about evolution. Students join Erin, a zoologist, on her quest to study birds of the not-Galapagos islands and solve for their phylogenetic trees. This puzzle-based game allows players to explore different islands, discover new bird species, and observe how the environment can affect the inherited traits of species. Through solving genetic puzzles, students will learn how to compare traits between species, use phylogenetic trees to determine evolutionary history, and even identify missing links in the genetic tree.

The game employs content scaffolding through the use of levels and increased puzzle difficulty to deliver more complex information to learners and reinforce learning objectives. It also utilizes game motivations of epic meaning through the narrative, accomplishment through solving puzzles, and exploration to motivate students to engage with learning content.

As the programmer, my responsibilities consisted of programing the functional game mechanics in Unity game engine, from player teleportation to bird inventory collection. I also was in charge of coding the parts of the UI for the game, as well as sound design.