Ground-Breaking App turns Melbourne into a giant game

The-64-Ways-of-BeingWith school holidays in full swing, a major new creative project is inviting people of all ages back to the city by turning the CBD into a giant game.

Minister for Creative Industries Danny Pearson joined artist, game maker and RMIT academic Dr Troy Innocent for a demonstration of 64 Ways of Being, a free game app that turns a walking tour of Melbourne into an audio theatre performance, a history exploration and an inspiring creative experience.

“We are proud to back this local project that will showcase our great city in a new way and demonstrate once again why Victoria is the creative state and home of digital games,” said Minister Pearson.  “The 64 Ways of Being app puts Victorian innovation on show, providing opportunities for creative workers with a free, COVIDSafe activity that everyone can enjoy.”

Backed by the Victorian Government through the Creative State Commissions program, the game, which can be accessed on any smartphone, uses augmented reality in the style of popular games like Pokémon Go. It was created by Dr Innocent, working with live arts collective One Step At A Time Like This and game developer Millipede.

Developed over two years, the project brought together more than 20 Victorian performers, coders, games developers, researchers, musicians, Traditional Owners, cultural groups and translators to research and select key sites across the city and find creative, immersive ways to bring their stories to life.

The game traverses a three-kilometre trail across the city stretching from Parliament to Queensbridge by the Yarra River. Along the way, players will explore laneways and iconic sites where they will collect puzzle pieces, follow characters, or hear stories about the city.

Players will learn about the river that once flowed down Elizabeth Street while watching eels swim around the trams via their smartphone. They might also meet a digital character in Croft Alley or uncover hidden worlds in Chinatown.

64 Ways of Being has been an amazing opportunity to collaborate with other creative practitioners,” said RMIT Vice-Chancellor’s Senior Research Fellow and project lead, Dr Troy Innocent. “We’re really excited to see how Melburnians and visitors embrace it.”

The Creative State Commissions program was created to support ground-breaking creative ideas that boost Victoria’s reputation as a creative state, attract tourism and make a lasting impact on creative careers and the wider community.

With the CBD game now live, the team plans to expand the game into other locations across Melbourne over the next 12 months including St Kilda, Footscray, Fitzroy and Collingwood with the potential to expand to other regions or to take this Victorian-made games model to other countries in future.


The free 64 Ways of Being app can be downloaded from the Apple store and Google Play. For more information, visit: www.64waysofbeing.com for details.

Image: The 64 Ways of Being app being played in Melbourne (supplied)