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Our game aims to reward curiosity about Synthetic Biology and the iGEM competition. Throughout the game you will be helped by our mascot – Talk'E.coli! With him you will learn the basics of molecular biology, create your own little genetic network and see its consequences on the bacteria. And for the bravest of you the challenge mode will train you to answer biological questions using iGEM’s Biobricks.
In the Biomol Mode, you will learn the basic mechanisms of the molecular biology. What are DNA, RNA, Transcription or Translation? This mode will give you all the answers. The Biobrick Mode aims to raise awareness of the iGEM competition and its purpose.
In the Network Mode, TalkE will explain to you how to create your own network. You have to choose between several promoters, RBS, genes and terminators. Some combinations work more or less some just don’t. If you achieve to create your protein you will be able to see its effect on the bacteria. For instance, you can play with the fluorescence effect of your protein.
In the Challenge Mode, you need to solve a problem using a combination of two Biobricks. After each level you achieve, you obtain a score and you access to the next level but you will loose one minute until level 5 and after level 3 you have to choose not only the right Biobricks but also the right restriction enzymes to achieve a 2A assembly.
Here are the results of our questionnaire. This questionnaire was given to every beta testers. There are students of Grenoble INP - Phelma from different streams such as bioengineering and biomedical imaging, physic and nanoscience, materials engineering, microelectronics, Multimedia but also some PhD students from the same fields. It seems that this game pleases a lot and that it can be a fun tool. But the panel seems to be more skeptical about this game being used to teach molecular biology or to help modelers and biologists to understand each other. But the majority thinks it can! Most of them really like the Network Mode but think that the Challenge Mode is too difficult according to the two Recap Mode. By the way this two mode, instead of having a lot of text should have more diagrams. The design and the game play completely retro seem not to please everyone, according to the questionnaire these are the two main aspects they think it needs to be improve. Click here to see a sum up of the answers
