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Why we made Build Anything

A dad, a 9-year-old game designer, and a worry many parents share.

The worry

Lots of children want to play the big online game platforms (like Roblox) from a very young age, often because their friends do. Many parents we talk to feel uneasy about it, for three reasons:

  • What they might see. Anyone can publish games on open platforms, so children can easily come across shooting games, fashion-parade and "rate my look" games, and endless zombie games, with chat full of strangers.
  • Very little learning. Hours can go by with nothing to show for it, and in-game shops are always nudging children to spend.
  • Parents can't really see what's happening. It's hard to know what your child played, who they talked to, or how long they were really on it.

So we built our own

Build Anything started as a drawing on a sheet of paper by Eva, aged 9: a START button, a sunny field, two doors with sums on them, and "lots of different houses". Her dad built it with her, one idea at a time. Every part of the game, from the bear's treasure cave to the pink space jet, came from a child's imagination.

It's a game children really want to play, made so that parents can say yes to it.

How Build Anything answers each worry

😟 What they might seeShooting, fashion parades, zombies, strangers

A bright, kind world, and nobody else's games

  • Every part of the world is made by us. Nobody can publish a game into it.
  • No fighting, no blood, no scary monsters. To be completely open: there is a paintball tower whose colourful splats wash away after a minute, and a cheeky bear who can gobble you up and burp you into a jail for a few minutes. That's as wild as it gets.
  • No looks contests: avatars are for fun, and everyone gets every outfit free.
  • No typing to other players. Friends wave with emoji balloons, and only friends their parents have approved.
😟 Very little learningTime that adds up to nothing

Learning comes first, every day

  • Brick Academy: 20 to 25 minutes of maths, spelling, grammar and reading, set to your child's school year (Years 2 to 6, English primary curriculum).
  • Wrong answers get a short, clear explanation, then a different question on the same idea. Mistakes come back at the end until they're fixed.
  • Even building needs brains: hotels take division, gardens take adding.
  • Stuck? If the same thing goes wrong again and again, the game says so kindly and asks your child to ask a grown-up for help. It tells you too.
😟 Parents can't seeWhat did they do? For how long?

Parents are in charge, and see everything

  • Parents sign up. Children only give a first name. A parent gives their own name and email.
  • Parents decide how long their child can play after the learning: 30, 45 or 60 minutes. The game counts down kindly, then says goodnight.
  • Parents get a report after every quest: a green, amber or red summary, what went well, what keeps coming back, and what to practise together.
  • Parents approve friends. Children swap a picture code in real life, and both sets of parents say yes before they can play together.

What we promise

  • No adverts. No in-game shop. No loot boxes. No selling or sharing your data.
  • We only keep what we need: your child's first name and school year, your first name and email, and their quest answers.
  • Plain English, always. If something changes, we'll tell you first.
  • One simple, low price once we open properly (see Pricing). Founding families play free.

Who we are

We're a family in Winchester. Eva (Year 5) is the game designer, her brother George (Year 2) is chief tester, and their dad writes the code. We're opening first to families at St Bede's School, Winchester and our twin school, Gerberacher Primarschule in Wädenswil, Switzerland.

Questions, worries or ideas? We'd love to hear them: send us a message or share your feedback.