Successful beta test for Kitty Q

Overview

“The fact that this app imparts knowledge and time on the phone is not just wasted – that's nice,” comments one enthusiastic mother after her son took part in the beta test.

The Kitty Q mobile game was put through its paces by children, teenagers, and parents in Dresden at the end of July. The app by the Cluster of Excellence ct.qmat – Complexity and Topology in Quantum Matter is scheduled for global release at the end of October. It uses a playful approach to generate interest in quantum physics. The concept has already won an award.

Gigantic beanbags, a moving couch, and plenty of lemonade – the mobile game about the popular gedankenexperiment Schrödinger’s cat was tested under real conditions at the Dresden Technical Collections, mainly by 7- to 15-year-olds. A survey was then carried out to evaluate the app. It showed that the target audience responded positively to the game and pointed to areas that require some final changes.

The mobile game was mainly designed as a playful introduction for girls to the opportunities of studying STEM subjects – science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics. Physics in particular is one of the disciplines with an especially low proportion of women. With Kitty Q, the ct.qmat research alliance comprising the Würzburg and Dresden universities is adopting an unusual approach to the recruitment of young researchers as it addresses a very young audience.

“We received valuable feedback and now know how we can make the game’s narrative just that little bit better. It was especially pleasing to see that everyone enjoyed the game,” says app designer Philipp Stollenmayer following the beta test.

Kitty Q is the first commissioned work by the young developer, who since 2013 has already won all of the prestigious awards in game design – most recently the 2020 Apple Design Award. “We are extremely proud that Philipp is developing our game. He has acquired a taste for the quantum world, which you can tell when you play through the game,” emphasize the two cluster speakers Prof. Matthias Vojta (Dresden) and Prof. Ralph Claessen (Würzburg).

The German Research Foundation (DFG) is funding the project with €100,000 as part of the International Research Marketing Ideas Competition.

More on Kitty Q

Find out more about the subsequent global release of the mobile game here: https://www.ctqmat.de/en/news/2021-10-13-experience-the-completely-crazy-quantum-world-global-release-of-the-kitty-q-mobile-game