We are a double bottom line company. Our goals are to keep ourselves in business and to increase general knowledge of molecules. Proteins, lipids, drugs, allergens, vaccines, degradable plastic, ocean acidification, health: molecules are the key to understanding many important concepts. We will accomplish our goals by creating games that take place in the molecular world and making them available and appealing to a wide audience.
More science games: We run the ScienceGameCenter.org Search for games by topic, device, intended audience.
Melanie Stegman, Ph.D., is the owner and Creative Director of Molecular Jig Games. A biochemist for 10 years, Melanie studied the molecular causes of brain cancer, birth defects and Tuberculosis. In 2008, Melanie took over the Immune Attack game project at a think tank in DC. Successful at grant writing and biochemistry teaching, Melanie taught herself education research, game design and product management. Inspirations include Adventure, Micro Surgeon, StarCraft, Legend of Zelda, and Plants vs. Zombies. (See MolecularJig.com/research for Melanie’s work and CV.) Melanie Stegman conducted one of the first controlled, quantitative studies of games and learning (on our first game, Immune Attack): we showed increases in learning and confidence with molecular cell biology. Our research paper is free at MolecularJig.com/research.
Teammates
Art
Rebecca Sinclair
Sound Design
Tom Miller
Advisors
Howard Young, Ph.D. Molecular and cellular immunology, innate immunity, finding other experts.
Kevin Clark, Ph.D. Engaging African-American students in STEM, video games and tech use.
Dr. Toni Pollin, Ph.D. Molecular, genetic and cellular aspects of diabetes and heart disease.
Scot Osterweil, Effective and engaging learning game design.
Mark Terrano, Strategy game design, video game business acumen.
Mike Klymkowsky, Ph.D. Teaching fundamentals of molecular science in a systemic way.
Jodie Jenkinson, Ph.D. Using animation, illustration to teach molecular behavior.
What people are saying about Immune Defense
September 2016 5 Maryland-made virtual reality projects you should know about
July 2016 6 DC-born indie games you can play right now
July 2016 13 ways to jump into DC’s indie gaming scene
July 2015 Here’s what you can play at Gamescape this year
January 2015 Rock, Paper, Shotgun by Shaun Green.
August 2014 Serious Game Market by Eliane Alhadeff.
July 2014 Binky’s Blog
Why do we make games about proteins? What can you learn by playing our games?
