About ImmunoWars
- Founders: Dennis de Beeld and Rafael Jezior
- Founded in: 2019
- Employees: 4
- Money raised: 14.000 via crowdfunding
- Ultimate goal: Using gamification and humor to better inform people about infectious diseases, science and medicine.
ImmunoWars is a card game about the battle between immune system and disease. In other words, you can take out your friends by attacking them with Ebola, Salmonella, or Cholera, to name a few. The start-up wants to inform people in a playful way about what types of infections there are, and what you can and cannot do to cure yourself.
Founders Dennis de Beeld (24) and Rafael Jezior (29) study Life Science & Technology at the University of Leiden and come into frequent contact with viruses, bacteria and cells. “In every cell it’s festival and war every day, that’s very interesting. But we also notice that a lot of people don’t know anything about it. With ImmunoWars we want to show how this works in a manageable and entertaining way”, explains De Beeld.
In this episode of start-up of the day, the founders tell from their office in PLNT, a center for innovation and entrepreneurship in the city center of Leiden, how they plan to change the world with their card game.
Wat is ImmunoWars?
De Beeld: “A game of 108 playing cards with a mix of dark humor, entertainment, and scientifically accurate information in the game. Its purpose is to take out your opponents by infecting them with viruses and bacteria—such as hepatitis, rabies, and influenza—and keep yourself alive through the use of vaccines, medications, and your immune system. After one or two games you have mastered the game. Each of the players is like a mad scientist who joins one side in the storytelling behind ImmunoWars. Either on the side of Mr. White, who is revolutionizing the medical world, or in Mr. Black who develops infectious diseases and bioweapons.”
Jezior: “In the game you have three different cards: attack, event, and defense cards. Attack cards are the viruses and bacteria, there you can see which infectious disease does what, how contagious and curable it is, and what symptoms are associated with it. Defense cards allow you to protect yourself and your immune system by applying vaccines, drugs and technology to fend off an attack.”
What problem do you solve?
De Beeld: “When dealing with social problems, you see that misunderstanding and disinformation are a major problem. Take the corona pandemic. Many people do not understand exactly what corona is, because it is abstract. That leads to fear and resistance. We want to inform people and make them understand how it works.”
Jezior: “Look, scientists are brilliant, but they are often not very good at putting themselves on the map with the general public. We want to help them with that and repair the public’s mistrust of science. ImmunoWars goes to war with fake news.”
How do you plan to reach a target audience that has nothing to do with science?
Jezior: “With humor! Instead of saying in a pedantic tone: that’s the way it is, we do it with humor. If you start a conversation about corona through logic and arguments, you won’t solve anything. It is often an emotional problem, people are afraid, because they do not understand exactly what the virus is and does. In addition, we are also fully committed to visuals and strategic play elements to entice people to play our game.”
Where are you now and where do you want to be in five years?
De Beeld: “Our first edition consisted of two thousand games. More than half of these have now been sold. We also released a 32 STD card expansion, the SOA Booster Pack. Soon we want to continue with a Into The Wildedition about fungi and parasites and even in the future also a family edition so that parents can play it with their children too. We have so many ideas.
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What are you most proud of?
Jezior: “There are a lot of games and there is also a lot of science, but there are very few scientific games. We have combined the two and are getting positive feedback from both quarters. I am very proud of that.”
De Beeld: “When we see a photo of people playing our game, without us having given any input. I find it very inspiring to see that friends, colleagues, families, and total strangers play ImmunoWars on a pleasant evening.”
On September 17, ImmunoWars will be at the Night of Discoveries in the city center of Leiden.