The Mystery of Taiga River takes place in a 3D immersive world where students become environmental scientists who lead a scientific investigation to save a virtual park with ecological problems causing the fish to die out. The game not only teaches students issues of water quality like pH, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and nutrient run-off, but also presents an innovative way of using a systems thinking approach to decision-making in a complex community. Consistent with the scientific method, players interview people, develop hypotheses, collect and analyze data, and eventually solve the problem.
