Million Piece Mission

Objective

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. Air Force Museum closed its physical location, cutting off public engagement and visitor programs. The Air Force sought to maintain connection with audiences and continue inspiring the public about aviation history and military careers through a novel digital experience that embodied the service's values of aiming high and working together.

Solution

Active Theory and GSD&M created a 1.2-million-piece real-time multiplayer jigsaw puzzle powered by a 1.03-gigapixel photograph of the museum's fourth building. Players worldwide solve tile-based puzzle rooms of varying difficulty on AirForcePuzzle.com, earning points based on pieces solved, time invested, and image complexity. The experience features a live global leaderboard, player avatars visible in real time, account creation to save progress, and unlockable content with museum facts and historical information. Built with WebGL and Active Theory's Hydra framework, the game runs on desktop and mobile devices with free access.