Gamification and the Power of “Inccidental Learning” – The Elemental Perios Project

Case Study: Gamification and the Power of “Accidental Learning” – The Elemental Perios Project

Overview:
Can a child memorize dozens of made-up characters and complex mechanics from a favorite video game—but struggle to recall basic science concepts in school? If so, what if we flipped the script, combining gameplay and learning into one seamless experience? That was the bold question behind Elemental Perios, a game built to teach kids chemistry—without them even realizing they’re learning.

Forge Modern partnered with the Elemental Perios team to help bring this vision to life, applying our expertise in 3D animation, interactive storytelling, and game development to create a game that feels like Pokémon, plays like a quest-based adventure, and just so happens to teach the Periodic Table of Elements. The result? A powerful example of how gamification can reshape education.

The Challenge: Turning Science into Play

When Stuart Miller, the creator behind Elemental Perios, realized how much mental real estate his kids devoted to video game trivia, he asked a transformative question:

“What if all that energy went toward something actually educational?”

His answer came in the form of Perios, a universe where each character represents a chemical element with traits based on its scientific properties. Hydrogen might be quick and reactive. Gold might be rare and stable. Just like Pokémon™ or other creature-based games, each Perio has strengths, weaknesses, and abilities—but underneath the character design is real science, translated into a child-friendly, visually rich experience.

This wasn’t about putting flashcards in a game. It was about building a game so fun, so immersive, that the learning happens accidentally—what we like to call “accidental learning”.

Step 1: Designing a Chemistry Adventure

With the concept in place, the next step was execution—how do you turn a periodic table into a world of adventure?

That’s where Forge Modern came in.

Led by Elias Clark, Creative Developer at Forge Modern with a Master’s in Animation and New Media, our team worked alongside Stuart to help craft the visual world, character design, and gameplay systems for Elemental Perios. The goal was simple: Create a game that holds its own next to major titles in terms of experience, while baking education into the DNA of the mechanics.

We approached the project with three priorities:

1. Visual Engagement – Players are greeted with lush environments and creatively designed characters that feel alive, each Perio designed with elemental traits embedded in their look and behavior.
2. Narrative Structure – The game follows a quest-based format, where the player, known as the Elemental Explorer, navigates a vibrant world, collects Perios, and solves environmental challenges using the properties of the elements.
3. Gameplay with Purpose – Every interaction is tied to a real chemistry principle. Combining Perios? You’re triggering a chemical reaction. Using their abilities? You’re applying their elemental properties. Learning happens naturally as the player experiments and explores.

Step 2: Building the First Level – A Proof of Concept

Together, we built out the first full level of Elemental Perios. This involved full 3D environment creation, character animation, and UI design to guide young players through an intuitive and exciting introduction to the game’s world.

Forge Modern used Unity as the development platform, leveraging real-time rendering, interactive scripting, and layered animations to bring the world to life. Our in-house artists developed original 3D models for the Perios themselves—each with animation cycles, expressions, and visual effects to make them feel like part of a living, breathing ecosystem.

The first level introduces basic gameplay and educational mechanics:

• Players meet their first Perio and learn how its traits relate to a real element.
• They face puzzles that require understanding elemental reactivity and combinations.
• All progress is designed to feel rewarding—not instructional.

The result? A game kids want to keep playing, and parents are happy to see them engaged with.

Step 3: Testing and Feedback

Once the initial level was complete, it was time to bring in playtesters—our most important audience.

We invited kids aged 8–13 to try out the game and give feedback. The response was overwhelmingly positive. Testers loved the characters, were eager to unlock new ones, and—most importantly—they remembered the chemistry. Parents reported their kids talking about real elements by name and making connections in everyday life.

That’s the magic of gamified learning. It sticks.

Gamification: Why It Works

At Forge Modern, we understand that game mechanics aren’t just for entertainment—they’re incredibly effective learning tools. Games reward curiosity, reinforce trial-and-error, and help players form meaningful mental associations with information. When designed correctly, they create intrinsic motivation—the learner wants to engage.

With Elemental Perios, we harnessed this power to create:

• Retention through repetition (each Perio appears often in various scenarios)
• Pattern recognition (chemical reactions as puzzles)
• Story-driven recall (learning associated with characters and plot)

This is the essence of accidental learning—where the player is so immersed in play that they absorb complex concepts without effort or resistance.

Looking Ahead: Expanding the Universe

Elemental Perios is just getting started. With a crowdfunding goal to complete the next stages of development, the project is ready to scale up—more levels, more Perios, more chemistry.

As the game grows, so does its educational potential. Imagine a world where:

• Kids come into high school already familiar with the periodic table.
• Complex topics like covalent bonding or molecular structure are taught through boss battles.
• Learning becomes something kids look forward to—not something they endure.

With games like Elemental Perios, that future is within reach.

Conclusion: Learning That Feels Like Play

The success of Elemental Perios so far is a testament to what’s possible when you combine great storytelling, visual design, and game development with a clear educational goal. Forge Modern was proud to help bring this vision to life—proof that fun and function are not mutually exclusive.

We believe in the future of gamified learning, and we’re excited to keep building tools that make education more accessible, more engaging, and more memorable.

Interested in creating your own gamified learning experience?
Let’s talk. Forge Modern is here to help turn your educational idea into an interactive experience that sticks.