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Atlantis Island

A  game about data, energy and survival.


Atlantis Island began with Kate Farrell's idea for a roll-and-write game that could open up conversations about artificial intelligence, data centres and the infrastructure that makes the widespread use of AI possible.


Players arrive on Atlantis Island as the CEO of their own AI business. As the game unfolds, they make choices about the data centres, energy and resources they need. But the stakes are high. Can they build a successful business without destroying the very island it depends on?






Through many rounds of playtesting with students and teachers, Kate, Jasmeen and Antonia honed the game into an experience that gets people playing, thinking and talking together. Elspeth designed its visual world and worked through prototypes to turn the idea into a physical game that can be picked up and played, or downloaded and printed anywhere.


A fictional island becomes a way into some very real and pressing questions about the rapid uptake of AI technologies. What resources does this technology need? Where does it come from? Who makes the decisions? And what are we prepared to trade off?

The game is the beginning of that conversation.