Play
At the Center for Transformational Play, we use the power of play to tackle educational, professional and social challenges.
Along with our groundbreaking work in the development, production, and design of transformational games, we also serve as a hub connecting interdisciplinary expertise across Carnegie Mellon University. From educational gaming work at the Human-Computer Interaction Institute to transformational game capstones at the Entertainment Technology Center, we collaborate with cutting-edge researchers in computer science, neuroscience, psychology, drama, and art - all areas where CMU’s excellence helps us advance our work on transformational play.
Explore some of our award-winning transformational games that shape how people think, feel, and behave.
Our Games
Echo of the Abyss
Echo of the Abyss is a Virtual Reality (VR) experience that aims to foster a sense of connection and curiosity towards marine ecosystems by allowing players to embody a diver, guided by aquatic animals, in a safe and contemplative virtual environment.
Bloomwood Stories: Block Party
Developed in connection with the NIH’s All of Us research initiative, Bloomwood Stories is a visual novel game aimed at increasing health knowledge and self-efficacy within populations who have experienced healthcare bias.
Dear Archibald
Dear Archibald is a highly accessible, play-by-text role-playing game for one to five players about community, care, and figuring out who we are to ourselves and to each other.
Frolic
Frolic is an award winning mobile app designed to encourage play and playful activity in girls ages 7-12 and encourages parents to support their daughters' healthy habits.
Rosenstrasse
Rosenstrasse is an award-winning tabletop roleplaying game about the loss of civil liberties in Berlin under the Third Reich, and a historical women's protest.
Monsters of Appalachia
This live-action role-playing game (LARP) for four to 40 players introduces strategies used by Remake Learning to collaborate across professions and unlock the power of groups to achieve goals bigger than any single person could on their own.