A Tale of Two Puppets, Two Avatars and Two Countries

We describe observations from studies conducted with school children in Nepal and Portugal with the aim of exploring two questions: 1. Can we develop an interactive game that will continue to engage the child in gameplay when the electricity supply fails? 2. What are the discernable differences in the ways children in Nepal and Portugal interact with the game given the huge socio-economic and cultural differences between them? The studies highlight the potential of the design in fostering continued engagement in the game when the electricity supply fails. They also show surprising little difference between the children in Nepal and Portugal. The observations suggest game mechanism and basic interactions can be regarded as universal across cultures and levels of income and can thus be designed and tested in any location and be expected to work and be understood by children from any culture and background.