Abertay Carbon Capture game gets Royal treatment at BAFTA HQ

Abertay Carbon Capture game gets Royal treatment at BAFTA HQ

Net Carbon, a game developed by four Abertay University students for energy company SSE Thermal, has been demonstrated to HRH Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, at BAFTA’s headquarters in London.

Second-year BA(Hons) Game Design and Production student Harry Petch travelled to the UK capital to celebrate the refurbishment of BAFTA’s Piccadilly headquarters and to demonstrate the game originally created for SSE Thermal to showcase at COP26 in Glasgow.

Harry created Net Carbon alongside fellow Games Design and Production students Cameryn Tuliao, and Jaime Williams and BA (Hons) Computer Games Application Development student Jordan Han.

The team formed during a game jam when groups of students were asked to submit ideas for an interactive game inspired by carbon capture technology.

The students originally met via the BAFTA Young Game Designer competition and decided to collaborate in the game jam, with the brief from SSE Thermal looking for an educational video game focused on carbon capture and storage.

Harry was previously the recipient of a BAFTA Young Game Designer Mentor award for his work in creating games development clubs whilst in Sixth Form at Oakwood Grammar School.

Harry said: “I was delighted to be invited by BAFTA to visit their newly-refurbished HQ and demonstrate Net Carbon for the Duke of Cambridge.

“Prince William was a great sport and was keen to find out more about the contribution the games industry makes to the UK economy.

“It was great to see the investment BAFTA have put into their games division so more young students like me can have the best start possible within the industry.”

Gregor White, Dean of School of Design and Informatics at Abertay University added: “We’re thrilled that Harry had the chance to demonstrate Net Carbon for Prince William at BAFTA.

“Working on this project with SSE Thermal in the run up to COP 26 has been fantastic and is just one example of industry experience young creators can have when studying at Abertay.

“We’re all excited to see what Harry and the team produce as they continue their studies with us.”

John Johnson, Director of Development at SSE Thermal, said: “The team at Abertay University did a tremendous job in creating ‘Net Carbon’ in the run up to COP26, where SSE served as a Principal Partner to the UK Government.

“It helped to show the vital role carbon capture will play in helping the UK achieve its net zero targets, and proved popular with members of the public as well as delegates. It’s fantastic to see the game is continuing to make an impact, and I’m sure Prince William was impressed by the level of skill exhibited by the team from Abertay.”

Lisa Prime, Children and Young People Manager at BAFTA added:0“BAFTA was delighted to invite Harry to represent its Young Game Designer initiative to HRH The Duke of Cambridge at the re-opening of 195 Piccadilly.

“In addition to being two times YGD finalist, Harry received a YGD Mentor Award in 2021.  He is a shining example of the benefits and importance of giving back to the games community and has supported his peers and younger students in developing their expertise and networks. 

“BAFTA is proud of the YGD alumni who came together to develop Net Carbon and demonstrate how games can have significant social impact and benefit thinking around sustainability and the climate emergency.”