Games for the “Capybarabooom” exhibition

About the project

The task

The Moskvarium needed two games based on the exhibition’s ready-made scripts and characters: a competitive race in which the character’s speed depends on how fast the player turns a handle, and a touch-screen puzzle about a bath for a capybara. Points from both games had to go into the exhibition’s shared database so that visitors could accumulate capycoins on their cards. The software was due by 1 October, and the launch at the venue by 15 October 2025.

What we did

“Capy and Leo” — the race

A large arched projection on the wall and two stands shaped as a capybara and a leopard, each with a handle. The start screen reads “Who’s faster? Let’s race!”. The players turn the handles: this is how they choose the number of participants — one or two — and how they speed up their characters. With two players, the screen splits in half. On screen are a timer, the metres to the finish, the speed in km/h and a scale with a green zone: to get past an obstacle, the speed has to be brought down into that zone. A mini-map shows where both characters are.

The track and the finish

The track runs past logs, barrels, cones and rolling tumbleweeds, and along the way you can collect items — hearts, musical notes, stars; points are given for what you collect and for speed. There are two locations: the savannah, with the start and finish under rainbow arches, and a jungle river along which the characters swim. There are three characters — a capybara, a leopard and a crocodile. At the end comes “Hooray! You’re the best!” and the points for the run; the players tap their cards, and their capycoin balance grows: “Well done, CapyDanya! +75. Your score is now 179”.

“Capy Onsen” — the puzzle

The touch screen is built into a pink “bathroom” wall next to a three-dimensional figure of a capybara in a bath. The start screen reads “Fill the capybara’s bath in time!”, followed by a choice: one player or two. The rule is “Help the capybara fill the bath — match 3 identical items in a row!”: peaches, ducklings, leaves, flowers, hearts, musical notes. The board is framed by pipes with a pressure gauge and a valve; beside it is a bathroom with a capybara, and a timer in the window counts down the time. Make it in time, and the screen shows “Victory!”.

Sound

For the race: running, swimming, jumping, collisions, a ticking timer, savannah and river ambience, interface sounds.

How it is built

Both games are built in Unity and run on Windows 10 on the Moskvarium’s equipment: a projector above the arch, stands with handles, a touch screen, card readers.

The obstacles in the race are generated by the software, so no two runs are the same.

Points from both games go into the exhibition’s shared database, following the Moskvarium’s documentation; the visitor sees their “Capy” name and new score on the screen.

Result