Introduction
(1) Stat Mission
Poland has recently published Stat Mission – a statistical game in app format targeted at teenagers. Given that for a numerous people statistics is still a “big unknown”, Statistics Poland decided to reflect this by taking their players into space. The game is available in three language versions: Polish, English and Bulgarian.
Gameplay
After choosing a character (Gustav, Gussie or Awlien), players are confronted with a tragic incident: as a result of an accident in the Intergalactic Institute of Statistics, the data archives on the Earth's XX and XXI century were lost. The only electronic backup is stored on the laptop of Professor Statistix - the most renowned expert on the earthly XX and XXI century. The professor set off on a research mission, and because he has been funding his own research for years, he has not shared any information about his whereabouts with anyone. Players are given the task to find the professor and bring back a copy of the data to the Institute.
To do so, players have to travel the galaxy and enquire about the professor on different planets. Once on a planet, players are encouraged to interact with its inhabitants to gauge information on the whereabouts of the professor. This can, in part, be done through conversations. Often, however, these conversations will lead to tasks for the players in the form of mini-games. Upon successful completion of a task, players then obtain useful hints about the professor. Additionally, by taking part in “yes or no”-quizzes, players can collect energy to fuel their space ship. Once enough energy has been stored, they can then travel between planets and gather new information. A small Easter egg is the asteroid field that at times appears randomly when travelling between planets. Here, players have two options: turning on the autopilot, which will automatically and safely guide the player out of the asteroid field or pilot the ship in the form of an arcade game.
Besides this element, Statistics Poland has included a variety of other gamification aspects to attract and maintain the attention of potentially new users. Storytelling is used through the scenario and the conversations with inhabitants on their planets. An element of mystery is built up through the unknown whereabouts of Professor Statistix. Quizzes and mini-games are integrated into the overall story line and a clear goal of finding the professor is set.
By combining all of these aspects, Statistics Poland hopes to promote and spark interest in official statistics, especially for younger audiences. Moreover, users have the chance to interact with detailed data and become aware of the meaning and scope of statistics by playing with them.
(2) Mini games
Statistics Poland created 10 on-line games for children. All of the games are connected with census ad basics of statistics. The subject of census currently is very important in Poland because of the Agricultural Census (being conducted during the year the games was developed) and the 2021 National Census of Population and Housing.
For this reason, Statistics Poland emphasises the promotion of censuses also among young people. The users of the games can be in the age range from small children to youth.
(3) Polish-English flash cards
Polish-English flashcards are intended to help users obtain basic statistical concepts in English to facilitate the use of Eurostat resources. Flashcards are available in
- an on-line version as "pairs"
- an off-line version as a PDF file for self-printing and cutting.
The task in the on-line version is to match the Polish definition to its English equivalent with translation and its explanation. This is done directly on the website (the Polish definitions are displayed, and users have to connect them to their English equivalent).
The off-line cards can be used as self-study material or as a pair-up game depending on the printing method. The flashacards can be downloaded as a pdf, can be cut into small pieces of paper with the Polish term on one side and the English term on the other, together with an explanation of the concept.
Links to the statistical literacy products
Multilingual (English, Polish and Bulgarian) product
Stat mission is available for Android and iOS:
Google Play store (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.godotengine.statmisja)
Apple store (https://apps.apple.com/pl/app/stat-misja/id1440141699?l=pl)
Bilingual (English and Polish) product
The Polish-English flashcards are available on the Statistics Poland website (https://eks.stat.gov.pl/materialy/fiszki/index.html)
Polish products
The mini games are progressively being made avalaible on the Statistics Poland website: https://stat.gov.pl/portal-edukacyjny/