Prism (ETC)

"It was exceptionally useful to help our students to see the differences in everybody"
- Michalene Mills, Principal, Beech Bottom Primary

"We know that we learn best when we're directly involved in our learning. With Prism, all the players have the opportunity to be directly involved... A lot can be learned from the immersive experience of this game."
- Michelle Lubetsky, Educational Consultant, Allegheny Intermediate Unit

Prism features a beautiful, 3D open world to explore and colorful animal friends to meet along the way. Players will come to understand characteristics and behaviors commonly associated with autism, such as sensory overload, repetitive self-soothing techniques, and difficulties with verbal communication.

As a nocturnal animal that has to navigate the unfamiliar daytime environment to save the forest, the fox may find itself in some challenging situations, but a helpful hint menu is available for players to access at any time if they get stuck.

The game is paired with a formal classroom discussion that helps link the themes and characters to autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The game itself takes approximately one half hour to complete, and the discussion can be completed in approximately the same amount of time. Together, the game and discussion are powerful tools to confront the important issue of better understanding and normalizing the lives of people with autism.

*Teacher Resources can be found at: https://www.etc.cmu.edu/projects/prism/index.php/for-teachers/

Made at Carnegie Mellon University's Entertainment Technology Center
http://www.etc.cmu.edu

Developed by:
Ridima Ramesh
Xueyang Wang
Dan Wolpow
Yutian Zheng
Yidi Zhu