CYTOSOFT Li3 Grp. 2
ABOUT THE EDTECH
Cyto-" is derived from the Greek "kytos" meaning "hollow, as a cell or container." From the same root comes the combining form S-O-F-T which is a shortened phrase for "Structure, Organelles, Functions, Theory." It is a tabletop board game that takes place around a typical prokaryotic cell, plant cell, and animal cell. Players start out by selecting their game characters and on their turn, they place their pawns on any available location within the trail. Some locations provide resources (e.g, microscopes, draw Closer Look Cards), and some with actions (e.g, move forward in the tiles, draw Power Cards). Closer Look Cards are used to complete all three cells' featured parts, which also score microscopic points. The player with the highest total of microscope supplies at the end of the game wins!
The Game Components
5 Portrait Cards
10 Blue Cell Component Cards
10 Green Cell Component Cards
10 Red Cell Component Cards
30 Special Cards
15 Wild Cards
30 Green Miniature Microscopes
20 Yellow Miniature Microscopes
15 Pink Miniature Microscopes
1 Red Miniature Trophy
4 Blue Miniature Trophies
12 Dices
5 Character Game Pawns
1 Start Hexagon Platform
1 Finish Hexagon Platform
1 Trail Board
1 Plant Cell Board Cutout
1 Animal Cell Board Cutout
1 Bacterial Cell Board Cutout
1 Cell Of Wonders Booklet
The Game Setup
Set the trail (the board) on the table with the right side facing up to the number and position of the players aligning with the placements of both the ‘start; and ‘finish’ hexagon platforms.
Place the bacterial cell (prokaryotic cell), the plant cell, and the animal cell cutout boards in the spaces provided inside the trail.
Separate the miniature microscopes into like colors, placing them in groups near the board. These game pieces make up the points.
Then, place a pair of dice in every corner or according to the number of players. Those dice are used to generate a combination of numbers; they are summed up to decide the distance through which a character piece will move along the board.
Place the miniature prizes near the end of the trail. Put the "Cell of Wonders" booklet near the miniature awards.
Separate the three types of Cell Component Cards: the Closer Look Cards (the puzzle card), the Power Cards (the wild and special cards), and the Portrait Cards (the player’s character).
Position the character game pawns of each player near the end of the trail labeled as the ‘start’ hexagon platform after the selection of characters.
All players may now select his / her preferred character or randomly draw a Portrait Card to identify which character he/she will play.
Here’s what the setup for a 5-player game looks like.
FUN FACT: CytoSOFT has provided a supplementary material called the "Cell of Wonders" booklet containing the science behind the game, features more detailed gameplay and setup, and even includes the key explanations for some of the uniquely exciting cards in this game, as well as auxiliary information about the various cell types, structure organelles, and function, with the most famous, cell theory.
The Gameplay
Select your favored character or randomly draw a Portrait Card to decide which character you will play. Featured Scientists: Robert Hooke (1635-1703); Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723); Matthias Jakob Schleiden (1804-1881); Theodor Schwann (1810-1862); and Rudolf Carl Virchow (1821-1902).
Each player must be given time to introduce their characters by reading the information already provided in the Portrait Cards — highlighting the knowledge about cells from the discoveries of numerous scientists; these sets of cards are accompanied by a character game piece for each scientist featured, respectively.
Give each player a set of random Power Cards according to the chart below. Don’t be too discouraged by the number of cards you have, since each player will be given a chance to take plenty more Power Cards within the tiles. It is an unknown, interesting, and unpredictable card that represents how cells take in nutrients, convert these nutrients into energy, carry out specialized functions, and reproduce as necessary. The various subtypes of Power Cards that players can take or draw in the game are classified into two kinds: the wild cards and the special cards.
Number of Players Number of Power Cards
2 Players 5 Cards
3 Players 4 Cards
4 Players 3 Cards
5 Players 2 Cards
Now, all players must roll their dice. The sum of the dice will determine each player's turn from increasing to descending hierarchy, to move forward along the board. One with the highest sum of dice will be the first player to take their turn, and then the play continues in the mentioned order. Otherwise, the play moves to the next person from right to left or vice versa.
Each turn, a player must place their character game pawns on the board and then immediately take the action required in the tile in order to collect resources such as various Cell Component Cards and miniature microscope supplies. Strictly, no more than one should be positioned on the same tiles. The first one in that position shall remain and the last one must move back one tile.
Shuffle the Cell Component Cards. A player draws a Closer Look Card — containing straightforward trivial and important information about a certain part's structure, organelles, function, and theory. These cards also indicate points and ‘read it aloud’ instructions. After taking the actions required by this card, players must place this card in the corresponding part of any of the three cell types positioned within the board. This furthermore makes a puzzle recognition on the board; the player must only accumulate the exact number of microscopes indicated in that particular card.
Points converted in the form of microscopes shall be only accumulated when a certain card instructs so. Again, these can only be found in the Closer Look Cards. The colors of microscopes vary according to each featured microscope kind and players can take a hint as to how many points ought to be accumulated: (a) Light Microscope (LM) – a green microscope equivalent to 5 points each. (b) Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM) – a yellow microscope equivalent to 10 points each; (c) Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) – a pink microscope equivalent to 15 points each.
Players must also read the information aloud for every player to hear as instructed in the Closer Look Cards.
After collecting the points, take notice of a certain part of the cell featured, which can still be found in the Closer Look Cards, a player must then place it on top of the cutout boards to complete a puzzle-like diagram until the very end of the game.
Once a player decides to use any of the Power Cards in his/her supply, he/she must make sure that he understands the instructions already provided in the card; players can take a hint as to when exactly the card could be used. If unsure, players may always open the booklet "Cell Of Wonders" and read the mechanics containing CytoSOFT's Game Play and Set Up.
While racing to the finish line, players can make total use of their resources.
Each player's turn depends on the sum of their rolled dice, furthermore, rounds can always be refreshed only until resources run out. Keep rolling the dice and be very careful in moving.
If there are no more randomized Closer Look Cards or Power Cards to be drawn, players must either continue rolling their dice to the finish line until someone is considered a winner or give up all their resources to refresh the game, while their positions in the tiles are retained.
Once a player gets to the finish platform, he/she is immediately considered the winner, and runner-ups will be determined by how close they were to the tail end of the board.
The winner will receive an "Outstanding Young Biologist Award", a red miniature trophy, whereas runners-up will receive a "Young Biologist Award" marked by a piece of blue miniature trophy.
CytoSOFT can be played in rounds. The board and character setups can be refreshed only after the resources have run out.
