Background

The Border Guard’s Border Museum in Imatra will be completely renovated (including facilities and activities) in June 2022. The Border Museum, like other military history museums, needs to be modernized for new target groups and new generations. These starting points, together with Xamk’s strong game industry, game design and programming, as well as graphic design and data analytics, offer a nationally unique opportunity to learn the useful game development of university students in the context of working life. The cooperation between students, the educational institution and the Border Museum also creates a sustainable basis for entrepreneurship and the development of a new gaming business.

Objectives

1. Development of modern gaming solutions based on working life with the experience industry – Case Rajamuseo.
2. Supporting history-themed student-centered game entrepreneurship – with museum pedagogy in mind.
3. Promotion of the gaming industry in Kymenlaakso and South Karelia – together with the social partners.

Measures

1. Customer-oriented solutions and new target groups – researching learning and museum pedagogical needs through co-development methods.
2. Intensive game development periods for students in cooperation with the Border Museum.
3. Presentation and testing of the developed utility game demos among different museum professionals, visitors and new target groups in the border area.
4. Historical Game Companies Lecture Series.

Project benefits

For students: working life skills, project skills, customer skills, utility game development and game business skills, game entrepreneurship ideas, seeing the opportunities in the area.

For the educational institution: new working life partnership, development of working life skills, working life orientation of the curriculum, employment, joint communication with the partner.

For the business community and the region: better gaming experts for companies, development of the gaming business, development of tourism, development of the business structure, introduction of gaming experts to the region, entrepreneurial opportunities.

For the Border Museum / Border Guard: modern, interesting content, new target groups, increase in awareness of the Border Museum, transfer of military historical awareness to new generations, positive image of the Border Guard -> support for recruitment.