Gamification for education

For many students, education costs placed a four-year college degree out of reach.

To address this, we created “Degree Dash”—a micro-game promoting a state program that made earning a college degree more accessible.

Designed in the style of retro 8-bit party games popular on smartphones and tablets at the time, Degree Dash featured two rounds of play.

The first round, players chased graduation caps to unlock access to the golden university—only to discover the goal was out of reach. (We intentionally designed it this way.)

On the second attempt, players were given a California Community College “Power-Up”, which made it easier to capture graduation caps (points) to win and unlock access to a college university.

The game became a centerpiece of a grassroots high school and community college tour across California, combining fun, nostalgia, and interactivity to communicate a serious message: community college can be a powerful pathway to a four-year degree.

Developer: Three29