Preparation Activities 

Initial Game Concepts – Game Change Project

As part of the Game Change project, participants from Romania, Poland, and Cyprus worked in international teams to design the first concepts of educational board games that promote inclusion, cooperation, and active participation.  These ideas represent the initial creative phase of the project, developed before the final training and before the creation of the final inclusive board game prototype.

Each team explored different mechanics, themes, and educational approaches. Their work reflects diverse perspectives on learning through play, teamwork, strategy, and social interaction. The concepts presented below show how young people transformed their experiences and ideas into innovative game designs aimed at fostering inclusion, dialogue, and critical thinking.

Cyprus Team – Game Concepts

1. Cash Quest

The Cyprus team developed Cash Quest, a dynamic educational simulation game focused on strategy, teamwork, and decision-making. The game simulates a real-life environment where teams must earn as much money as possible by solving questions and completing challenges before time runs out. Players begin with a starting amount of money and must decide how to invest it in order to unlock questions of different difficulty levels. Each correct answer allows them to earn money and increase the value of future questions.

The game also introduces unpredictable elements such as casino mini-games, negotiation opportunities, and risk-taking situations that encourage strategic thinking and collaboration. Through this mechanism, participants experience real-life decision-making, cooperation, and critical thinking, while learning in a playful and competitive environment. 

2. Youth Mario Party Style Game

The second idea from the Cyprus team is a board game inspired by the mechanics of Mario Party, combining movement on a board with interactive mini-games.

Players move across a board with different types of tiles that trigger various events, such as challenges, quizzes, and mini-games based on non-formal education activities.

The game emphasizes inclusion and accessibility, ensuring that participants can succeed through creativity and teamwork rather than relying only on knowledge.

Different game formats are possible, including:

• 1 vs 1 competition

• 2 vs 2 team play

• Free-for-all multiplayer challenges

Mini-games include activities such as debates, quick quizzes, and pitching youth initiatives, encouraging players to express ideas, solve problems, and collaborate with others.

The player with the highest number of points or stars at the end of the board wins the game, although the outcome remains uncertain until the final stages.

Poland Team – Game Concepts

1. KENT – Social Deduction Game

The Polish team designed KENT, a strategic social deduction game focused on observation, secret communication, and teamwork. In this game, players must communicate secretly with teammates while trying to achieve specific objectives without being detected by opponents. The mechanics encourage players to observe carefully, interpret signals, and cooperate strategically.

Players pass cards and build combinations while maintaining hidden communication systems using gestures, signals, or coded interactions. When a player successfully completes a combination, they announce "KENT!" to score points. However, opponents can interrupt the process by detecting the signal and calling "STOP KENT", which can reverse the situation and award points to the intercepting player.

This concept explores themes such as trust, secrecy, communication, and strategic thinking, turning observation and cooperation into key elements of gameplay.

2. Ticket to Ride Inspired Strategy Game

The second concept developed by the Polish team is inspired by classic network-building strategy games. Players must create transportation routes between cities and build an interconnected network across a map while managing limited resources. Each turn, players must choose between actions such as:

• collecting cards,

• claiming routes,

• or drawing new objectives.

The challenge lies in balancing short-term actions with long-term strategy, while preventing other players from blocking important connections. Hidden objectives and route bonuses add an extra strategic layer, encouraging players to take risks and adapt their plans during the game. This concept promotes strategic thinking, planning, and spatial problem-solving, while maintaining an engaging competitive environment.

Romania Team – Game Concepts

The Romanian team explored three different educational game models, each focusing on a different type of learning experience. Their approach combines reflection, cooperation, and strategy, allowing players to explore Erasmus+ values and youth participation in multiple ways.

1. Modular Flashcards System

This concept uses a flexible deck of cards designed to stimulate reflection, discussion, and personal development. Cards are divided into different categories such as:

• Identity cards

• Skill cards

• Experience cards

• Action cards

• Wild cards

Players answer questions, reflect on experiences, and discuss scenarios related to youth participation, values, and Erasmus experiences. The system can be played individually or in groups, allowing it to function both as a quick educational activity or a deeper reflective experience.

2. Cooperative Roleplay Board Game

This cooperative game focuses on teamwork and collective problem solving. Players take different roles within a team and work together to overcome challenges and complete a shared mission before time runs out.

The game introduces unexpected events such as:

• project difficulties

• cultural misunderstandings

• resource shortages

Players must collaborate, share responsibilities, and make strategic decisions to successfully complete the mission scenario. This format encourages communication, cooperation, and crisis management skills.

3. Erasmus Travel Strategy Game

The final Romanian concept is a strategy-based board game where players build travel networks across Europe. Players collect transportation cards (train, plane, bus) and connect important cities related to education, culture, and Erasmus experiences. Special event cards introduce real-life situations such as:

• missing a train,

• meeting international friends,

• or experiencing viral social media moments.

The objective is to build the most effective travel network while managing resources and completing objectives. This concept highlights mobility, cultural exchange, and strategic planning within a European context.

From Ideas to the Final Game

These concepts represent the first creative ideas developed by the participants during the early phase of the project. During the training activities and collaborative workshops that followed, participants analyzed these ideas, combined the strongest elements, and worked together to design the final inclusive board game of the Game Change project. 

The process demonstrates how co-creation, international cooperation, and non-formal education can transform ideas into innovative educational tools.