I developed Time Detectives: The Mystery of the Mary Rose, a multi-sensory augmented reality game created by Picture This Productions.

The experience turns players into time-travelling detectives, using their phone as a magical spyglass to investigate the mysterious sinking of the Mary Rose, Henry VIII's favourite warship. The first episode takes players back to 19 July 1545, asking them to uncover what happened on the day the ship sank.

The project combined AR gameplay, historical storytelling, sound, smell, physical space, and interactive clues to create an experience that felt part game, part museum visit, and part time-travel investigation. Instead of simply reading about history, players could move through the story, examine evidence, encounter characters, and piece together the mystery themselves.

My work focused on development, bringing the AR experience to life on mobile and helping turn a complex historical narrative into an interactive game that audiences could understand and enjoy. The challenge was to make the technology feel magical but simple, especially in a museum environment where players needed to stay engaged with both the physical space and the digital layer.

Time Detectives was created in collaboration with The Mary Rose, Royal Holloway, StoryFutures, British Council, Arts Council England, Innovate UK, and other partners. The project won the SXSW 2023 Innovation Award for Convergent Gaming.