Project Information

As a group, we conducted various research activities to understand what a board game is and how to create one. After interviews with the stakeholders (Petra and Maikel), we learned that we could develop any concept and decide on the target audience for the game. We chose Gen-Z as our target audience. I personally researched this group to understand their daily habits, such as the applications they use and how they interact with them. I discovered that they are very active on social media, which inspired the idea of creating a game based on social media. As a group, we brainstormed more ideas and used different CMD methods, following the Double Diamond approach. These methods included expert interviews, surveys, and others to help us shape the concept of our game.

Pio-Pero started as a simple idea inspired by the spirit of travel and exploration. Early versions included concepts like island adventures and Monopoly-style gameplay, but these felt too limiting and conventional. After exploring different mechanics, the concept evolved into a travel-themed game with digital integration, designed to be more interactive and modern. This shift aimed to capture the excitement of discovering new places while challenging players to think creatively.

In its final form, Pio-Pero blends traditional board game mechanics with unique elements like anti-clockwise movement and subtractive dice rolls, where players subtract their rolls instead of adding them (e.g., 5-2=3). Players start with money to unlock city stickers, pay for challenges, and use special game features. To win, they must collect three city stickers per stamp and gather three stamps in total, adding a strategic layer to the gameplay. The game also includes mystery boxes with surprise bonuses and side quests for extra rewards, keeping the experience fresh and engaging. The digital app further enhances the game with interactive challenges and mini-games.

During concepting day, teachers like Dirk, Pennie, Kadian responded positively to the concept, praising its potential for fun and creativity. They suggested adding more story elements to deepen the experience, and early visuals received encouraging feedback. With ongoing testing and refinement, Pio-Pero aims to become a memorable adventure for all players.

I started the design of the app by first making a low-fidelity (lo-fi) version. This helped me test the structure and basic flow of the game. After that, I created a high-fidelity (hi-fi) version that looks and feels more like the final product. I used React and Vite to build the app and added IndexedDB so it works offline.

The app includes different parts of the board game, like Mystery Box, Side Quests, and Questions. I added simple animations and made sure the design is easy to use. The game saves progress, so players can continue later. The high-fidelity version shows both the full design and how the game really works.

During the semester, we regularly presented our progress and product to our teachers. There were two types of presentations we did. The first one was a weekly progress update, usually on Thursdays. In these sessions, we explained the development of our group work, shared feedback, and showed how we were improving the product step by step. These presentations were more focused on the process.

The second type was more like a showcase or expo rather than a formal screen presentation. In these sessions, we showed the actual product to others. The first time we showcased our product was when the high-fidelity version was ready. It was the first moment when others could interact with a complete version of our design.

Later, we participated in the “Night of Nerds,” where we presented our product again and also did user testing. This helped us gather real feedback from users and improve the experience. Finally, we joined the end-of-semester Showcase Day, where we presented our final version to both teachers and other students. It was a great way to show our full journey and the finished result.