Levelling up

The NCS (National Citizen Service) was established in 2009 in the UK with a remit to improve the lives and well-being of young people, helping them to become both world-ready and work-ready.

Traditionally, NCS has focused primarily on hands-on experiences – organising trips away from home and funding grant-based programs within local communities.

To expand its mission, NCS partnered with PRELOADED to deliver its vision directly into the hands of millions of 15 to 17 year olds across the UK in a format increasingly native to that audience: gaming.The opportunity to drive meaningful impact and create lasting change that will set young people on the right path was incredible, and we were delighted to hear that NCS wanted to design not only for this audience but also with them.

Collaborating for Co-Design

PRELOADED and NCS both understood from the earliest stages that undertaking a true co-design process and creating a product that uniquely addressed the needs of the target audiences, required building a wider team of subject matter experts (SMEs) to contribute to the process.

We were delighted to partner with long-standing collaborator Livity. The Livity team brought youth expertise, marketing insights, and access to a vast network of young people whose insights and reactions we could gather through surveys. From the earliest stages, this provided invaluable feedback that not only helped determine the right approach but also ensured the final product would resonate and effectively reach the audience.

NCS themselves played a key role in the collaboration, offering their expertise in youth engagement and granting us access to young people across the country at various stages of the process. Their qualitative feedback guided critical decisions, from art styles to subject matter and tone of voice.

Within the network, we were also able to work directly with select individuals. For instance, Ben Jennings, a young copywriter for brands like Umbro + Friendly Neighbourhood Cinema, and winner of ‘Emerging Writer Award’ in 2023, joined us throughout production to ensure the copy was age-appropriate and truly resonated with the intended audience.

Authentic Impact

We wanted the game to be fun and engaging, but also highly effective and impactful, providing young people with genuine insights and learning opportunities.

To achieve this, we conducted a quantitative survey of over 2,000 young people from across England, alongside in-depth qualitative research to better understand their needs and identify what would be most valuable to them.

From the very first survey, it became clear that ‘finance’ was the topic young people felt most strongly about. We collaborated with subject matter experts in youth finance to identify critical skills gaps and determine which knowledge would best equip them for their daily lives.

Using these insights, we partnered with a learning designer to create our own framework of financial learning outcomes. We also integrated the Skills Builder Framework—a fantastic tool specifically designed to help young people understand and reflect on broader life skills. This framework guided the planning of content around key skills such as aiming high, problem-solving, and staying positive. Remarkably, no one had ever used this tool to create a game before.

With this solid foundation in learning design, we began crafting early game concepts, exploring gameplay mechanics and narratives that could incorporate these learning outcomes. We then shared these ideas with young people to gather their feedback and ensure the game aligned with their preferences.

Noodle Time!

The concept that resonated most strongly with our audience was a narrative-driven cooking game where players establish their own noodle shop in a near-future city known as Neohaven. In the game, you serve noodles, solve problems, and make tough financial decisions as you navigate the challenges of surviving the first 10 days, all the while meeting a host of interesting characters, each with their own story to share.

With a distinctive and compelling art style, a diverse array of characters and challenges, and a strong branching narrative approach, Neohaven Noodles is designed for replayability and embedded with smart financial literacy.

Through feedback and consultation with wider stakeholders, it was agreed to deliver this as a web-based experience optimised for mobile devices.  This not only suited the narrative-adventure style of the game but also ensured a low barrier to entry, making it accessible to as many young people as possible.

Providing in excess of 90 minutes of gameplay, but with the option to save progress and return later, the game accommodates different play styles—whether players prefer shorter, bite-sized sessions or longer, immersive experiences.

A Diverse Cast of Characters

An important part of Neohaven Noodles was the wide variety of unique characters populating the cultural diversity of Neohaven. This approach allows players to encounter and make decisions on a host of different financial scenarios covering different topics, helping them build familiarity with these concepts in an engaging and accessible way. 

Crucial to this diverse cast of characters was ensuring each one was thoughtfully and sensitively designed, with a story that aligned with the learning content.  Designing these characters in a culturally appropriate and accessible way was paramount, so we collaborated closely with Socials Matters whose invaluable feedback shaped and refined our early designs.

Play Neohaven Noodles here.