From Playtesting to Public Systems: Killer Snails Connects Game Design and Environmental Learning Across Two April Events

Students at City College engaging with WaterWays Augmented Reality

This week, Killer Snails had the opportunity to engage educators, students, designers, and environmental leaders at two inspiring events that highlighted a shared theme: learning works best when it’s interactive, collaborative, and grounded in real-world systems. From speaking at Waffle Games 2026 to exhibiting at the How Things Work conference, the team explored how thoughtful game design can deepen understanding across classrooms and communities alike.

Designing Educational Games with Teachers and Students

On Saturday, April 18, Killer Snails CEO and cofounder Jessica Ochoa Hendrix delivered a talk at Waffle Games 2026 focused on a central principle of classroom-ready game design: iteration powered by authentic feedback.

Developing educational games for K–12 students requires more than creativity and content expertise- it requires listening. During her talk, Jessica shared how Killer Snails brings teachers and students into the development process early and often to ensure that learning experiences are both engaging and practical for real classrooms. Teachers help shape alignment with instructional goals and classroom logistics, while students provide insight into usability, curiosity triggers, and collaboration dynamics.

This iterative process helps ensure that games are not only exciting to play but also easy for educators to adopt. In school environments where time is limited and curriculum alignment matters, design decisions informed by real classroom voices make the difference between a novel activity and a sustainable instructional tool.

Jessica also highlighted how feedback loops strengthen both pedagogy and product design. By testing prototypes directly with classrooms, Killer Snails can refine mechanics that support teamwork, reinforce scientific reasoning, and promote inquiry-driven learning. The result is a development model where educators are not just users—they are collaborators.

Events like Waffle Games demonstrate how the educational game design community continues to evolve toward more participatory approaches that prioritize classroom realities alongside innovation. 

Exploring Environmental Systems at the “How Things Work” Conference

Just days later, on Tuesday, April 21, Killer Snails exhibited at the How Things Work conference hosted at Bronx Community College. The event brought together approximately 200 middle school, high school, and college students, along with their teachers, from four New York City public schools and BCC to investigate a powerful question: how does the world actually work?

Organized in collaboration with the Environmental Education Advisory Council (EEAC), the BCC Green Action Challenge, the James Baldwin Outdoor Learning Center, Empire Clean Cities, and the Bronx Economic Development Corporation, the conference emphasized environmental literacy as a foundation for civic participation and informed decision-making.

Students explored systems that shape everyday life- from sewage treatment infrastructure to electric school buses- and considered how environmental knowledge connects to policy, technology, and community planning. These experiences reinforce a critical idea: understanding systems empowers people to engage meaningfully with the world around them.

Killer Snails’ presence at the conference highlighted how immersive learning tools can help students visualize complex environmental processes and collaborate to solve challenges together. By blending storytelling, science content, and interactive mechanics, game-based experiences make invisible systems both visible and actionable.

The How Things Work conference emerged from the Environmental Education Projects Forum, a network of educators working across formal and informal settings to strengthen sustainability education. Its interdisciplinary approach reflects a growing movement to connect environmental awareness with systems thinking across grade levels. 

Building Bridges Between Design and Environmental Literacy

Together, these two April events reflect a shared mission: supporting students as active participants in learning rather than passive recipients of information. Whether collaborating with teachers during game development or helping students explore infrastructure and climate systems, Killer Snails continues to champion experiences that make science social, relevant, and empowering.

By connecting iterative design practices with environmental education initiatives, the team is helping shape classrooms where curiosity drives discovery- and where students are equipped to understand the systems that shape their future!