Pupils move around the area in groups and learn about the history of democracy as a form of government, from ancient Greece to today’s Denmark. Along the way they get to know the democratic institutions and monuments that Slotsholmen is so rich in.

The game shows a map of the area with a number of points on it. The players’ own position is shown too, so they can see where they are and where they can go.

As the frame for the game, the pupils – in groups of four – form a political party and try to win enough seats to take government. They win seats by solving tasks around the area: answering questions correctly, looking for particular buildings or objects, voting on whether a set of words relate to a given theme, or running quickly between points on the map.

The game is divided into three missions, each covering a period in the history of democracy: the Greek origins of democracy, the age of revolutions, and democracy in Denmark. To move from one level to the next, the players must collect at least 30 seats.

The content was created in a collaboration between game designers and teachers from Amager Lille Skole and Sønderbro Skole. The game was developed with support from the Danish Ministry of Children and Education and fits into teaching in Danish, history and social studies. It is free for all schools in Denmark.

Slotsholmen is a unique location: here Absalon built his castle in 1167, establishing Copenhagen as an emerging centre of power in the Øresund region – and Denmark has been governed from here almost ever since. All three branches of government are represented, in the buildings of the Prime Minister’s Office, the Parliament and the Supreme Court.