Bubbles & Pearls

Bubbles & Pearls is a VR arcade game in which you dive through an endless underwater scroll, balancing oxygen, points and danger. Collect rising air bubbles to replenish your oxygen and rising pearls to score points, while avoiding oil bubbles. The dive ends if you run out of air or pop too many oil bubbles. You can compete with friends and family to complete the longest dive and collect the most pearls.

Pearl diving and change

The game takes inspiration from the waning tradition of pearl diving, though it is not a pearl-diving simulator. Pearl diving was one of Qatar’s main industries until the early 1930s, and was risky and physically demanding: divers faced limited oxygen, rapid changes in water pressure and marine predators, while the high value of pearls made the work profitable.

Bubbles & Pearls uses the changing value of pearls to represent the passage of time and evolution. The journey leads to the introduction of natural gases and the use of petroleum, marking an end and a new beginning in Qatar’s development.