An exiting browser game

Grytviken Game is based on inspiring story of leadership and team from the beginning of the 20th century. It’s a story about antarctic venture of Ernest Shackletona and Endurance ship crew, encouraging modern managers and leaders to use new approaches and leading actions, in order to build effectiveness in a team.

The century-old experience may be very educational for modern people. Present-day leaders do not have to face freezes and winds or perpetual night, but they certainly have to face difficult challenges. The participations in the course using Grytviken Game is supposed to prepare them to face the challenges.

Grytviken Game is an extraordinary workshop, it’s a virtual trip to Antarctica, fascinating, but dangerous land. Its participants become members of the crew of legendary Enrnest Shackleton. A licensed coach leads the group, telling the story and using audiovisual materials. In crisis points of the expedition, the story becomes interactive. There is division between the participants into two contending teams. They have to accomplish tasks which are extremely challenging. Each group has to predict the strategy of Shackleton and prepare more convincing solutions than his own.

The participants also exercise the skills of producing motivating and inspiring messages, encouraging the team to act. The groups contend with creating convincing strategies and analyse possibilities of using them in their daily work.

The training based on Grytviken Game wouldn’t be possible without a multimedia presentation prepared by MDAsystems. At the beginning, the participants receive iPads, in stylish cases, in order to introduce them to the climate of the expedition. Each group uses supporting software and video recording. Working in teams, the participants receive instructions and video materials describing the assigned task. The strategies are discussed in groups, and then messages for the crew are produced.

The presentation consists of three kinds of slides. It’s core are the parts, where the story is told by the coach. They were constructed as hypertext, allowing to navigating between pages to get more information. As the game goes on and facing new accidents, the information is complemented – you can always come back to the previous slides and check out for the new hints. An additional value and attraction consitute dynamic elements, such as a map, termometer, exact date and information about the day of the expedition. Their presence allows to feel the climat of the game and fast-flowing action on their own (for instance by observing the progress systematically updated on the map).

They come in handy while asking the questions, asked in two ways (these are the two next slides of the presentation). The task for the users is to answer a single choice question and solving a more complicated riddle. Its element is a film stopped suddenly. Each team has to prepare its own answer, e.g. the proposition of the ending of a stopped sentence. The next step is to choose the right answer among the three given by the participants and the one good. As a result, the participants create a kind of a dictionary, their own ‘encyclopaedia’ which they use after the game, in their daily work.

Grytviken Game is an advanced multimedia project integrating modern programming, visual and coaching solutions (e.g. especially prepared film miniatures introducing the tasks). It’s a perfect training device for managers dealing with teams or soon-to-be managers. The mix of a true story, managing business practice and technology delivered by MDAsystems produces a great effect.