Architecture Zeitgeist

Architecture Zeitgeist is a game created with great care by me, Matheus Rudo, a student at the University of Brasília, with the goal of popularizing the teaching of architecture and making the study of architectural references more immersive. The game has educational purposes and currently features two game modes:

• Story Mode: In this mode, the player studies the biography of a selected architect. They can walk through projects and search for notes, which tell the story of both the visited project and the architect responsible for it. Once the player collects all the notes about a project, they can move on to the architect’s next project and deepen their studies.
• Free Mode: In this mode, the player can freely explore the project.

Currently, the game includes the following projects in each mode:

• Story Mode: Barcelona Pavilion (Ludwig Mies van der Rohe), Azuma House (Tadao Ando), Villa Savoye (Le Corbusier), and Canoas House.
• Free Mode: Barcelona Pavilion (Ludwig Mies van der Rohe), Azuma House (Tadao Ando), Villa Savoye (Le Corbusier), Fallingwater (Frank Lloyd Wright – still in beta), and Canoas House (Oscar Niemeyer).

Development Roadmap:

• Addition of Fallingwater by architect Frank Lloyd Wright in both Story Mode and Free Mode.
• Addition of 4 new maps featuring architect Tadao Ando, in both modes. Preliminary list of projects:Church of the LightKoshino House4x4 HouseOval House
• Addition of 4 new maps featuring architect Mies van der Rohe, in both modes. Preliminary list:Farnsworth HouseCrown HallVilla TugendhatSeagram Building
• Addition of 4 new maps featuring architect Le Corbusier, in both modes. Preliminary list:Ronchamp ChapelUnité d’HabitationLa Tourette MonasteryNational Museum of Western Art
• Addition of 4 new maps featuring architect Frank Lloyd Wright, in both modes. Preliminary list:Robie HouseGuggenheim Museum New YorkTaliesin WestJohnson Wax Headquarters
• Addition of 4 new maps featuring architect Oscar Niemeyer, in both modes. Preliminary list:Niterói Contemporary Art MuseumPampulha ChurchItamaraty PalaceNew York Pavilion
• Game release and end of Early Access.

After that, it is difficult to say. The expectation is that the game will occupy less than 50 GB of disk space. If it reaches 50 GB or more, no new projects will be added, and a new game will need to be released. If there is still room for expansion, we may consider adding new architects. There are countless architects and projects that could be included — we may even open community voting for future additions. These could come as free updates or paid DLC.

The full content of the game will be quite extensive, with around 25 hours of gameplay and 25 maps. There is also interest in investing more in projects focused on Japanese architecture — perhaps a future release like “AZ: Japan”? We’ll see.

Architecture Zeitgeist is an independent, educational, and non-profit project. Purchasing the game is entirely optional, since the content available in the demo corresponds to the full version of the game. Therefore, buying the paid version mainly serves as a way to support the project. All revenue generated from the game’s sales is reinvested directly into its development, contributing to the creation of new maps, technical improvements, optimizations, bug fixes, and the expansion of its educational content. The project is also part of Matheus Rudo’s master’s research at the University of Brasília, Brazil.