On a small island in the ocean live two brothers, the old captain Styrbjorn
and the oceanographer Herman. One day they are out fishing when they get to
see something very strange. Dead fishes suddenly start floating up to the
surface and after a while a large area of the sea is covered with them. The
brothers get curious and decide to find out what is behind the fish death.
Therefore they initiate a research project and it’s up to the player to help
them out.

Djuphavsjakten (“The Deep Sea Hunt”) is an educational game dealing with a
wide range of subjects such as biology, oceanography, ecology, geology,
physics and technology. The gameplay can be compared to a simplified RTS, one
with a complete focus on research, construction and resource management. At
the start of the game the player only has access to the brothers’ boats. Some
research can be done on these but for more advanced projects more buildings
(such a laboratory and a workshop) have to be constructed. Each new building
introduces a new character to the story. When these characters have finished
their research on a subject they give the player a report and it’s here that
the educational aspects of the game come into play. The research reports not
only include text and images but many of them are also interactive and require
the player to finish them by showing what he knows. The player doesn’t have
infinite funds and new buildings and research projects cost money. To gain
money the player can do missions. Some of these missions involve mini-games
(for example pulling a cable between two islands or photographing birds) while
others involve doing specific research projects.

Djuphavsjakten