Secrets of the Garden

Inspiration

The inspiration behind our project lies in our passion for blending art and technology seamlessly. We envisioned an inventive game that would bridge the gap between the virtual and the real. Our journey led us to the enchanting concept of a magical garden, a place where nature's beauty meets technology. While traditional video games are confined to screens and controllers, our project breaks those boundaries. Players are encouraged to engage with the game using sensors and physical actions.This fusion of artistry and innovation fueled our desire to create an interactive experience. 'Secrets of the Garden' was born from this vision, offering players the opportunity to explore and interact with a world that responds to their moves, bringing the garden's mysteries to life.

What it does

The game welcomes the user with a screen displaying “Secrets of the Garden.” Then it shows, “tap, tap, tap, … who’s there?”, prompting the user to tap the force sensitive resistor. After tapping three times, LED’s turn on, indicating that the game has been initialized. The game tells the user that the tapping was just a fairy and that it left some pixie dust. Which leads the user to their first task, sprinkling pixie dust using a tilt switch. Once the user has sprinkled enough pixie dust, they are faced with a new challenge. The pixie dust has blocked the sun and caused pollution. The user must now add sunlight by using an LED and bringing it close to the photo resistor. However, something is still off. There are pests in the garden and the user must add the right number of potions using buttons to get rid of them. Once the user has finished this task, they have finished the game and saved the garden!

How we built it

The game is encapsulated in a cardboard box, decorated with paper flowers to represent a magical garden. We've integrated a variety of sensor modules that respond to different real-world actions, allowing players to engage with the game in way that feels natural and intuitive. We programmed two Arduino Megas and utilized an LED strip, a LED, photo resistors, buttons, a tilt switch, and an LCD screen.

Challenges we ran into

Our biggest challenge was achieving communication between two microcontrollers. We also ran into some other debugging issues with our sensors but utilized the serial monitor in Arduino to solve these issues.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re proud of having a finished project that works, and our proud of how much we have accomplished in this time.

What we learned

We learned how to combine various sensors using one microcontroller, and how to properly achieve communication microcontrollers.

What's next for Secrets of the Garden

We envision another Secrets of the Garden game with more complex sensors and a nicer fixture, adding more complexity to the puzzles.

Built With

• arduino
• sensors