Wonder Chase: Larry The Cat Election Update
Read the story- Brand
- BBC
- Year
- 2024
- Objective
- Engagement
- Industry
- Entertainment
- Mechanic
- Adventure & Quest
- Platform
- In-Game
Objective
With under-25s largely tuned out of traditional election coverage, BBC needed to reach that audience on a platform it already uses — Roblox, where the broadcaster cites more than 71 million daily users. Rather than launch a new product, BBC turned its existing branded world, Wonder Chase, into a free way to mark the UK's July 2024 general election and slip in basic facts about how voting works.
Solution
Players already exploring BBC Wonder Chase find its central hub rebuilt as a replica of 10 Downing Street. Larry, the real Downing Street cat, meets them at the door and sends them off to track down ballot boxes scattered across the world — boxes that can't be scooped into inventory, so getting one home means physically hauling it across the map's obstacle courses. Finish the job and Larry joins as a companion pet who tags along afterward. Along the route, avatars of BBC News presenters Laura Kuenssberg, Clive Myrie and Jeremy Vine step in with quick facts about the election, all folded into Wonder Chase's regular loop of obstacle runs, iPlayer coin collecting and sticker hunting.
Results
BBC Wonder Chase had logged more than 1 million visits by the time the election update launched, about three months after the world's April 2024 debut. Across its full lifetime since then — including later, unrelated seasonal updates — the world has drawn over 13.3 million visits and more than 441,000 favorites.
- 1
The player opens BBC Wonder Chase for free on Roblox — on PC, mobile, PlayStation, or Xbox — and enters a shared hub world built around BBC shows, with zones themed to Match of the Day, Doctor Who, EastEnders, and The Next Step.
- 2
During the election-themed update, the hub's central zone is rebuilt as a replica of Downing Street, with the player standing before a model of Number 10.
- 3
Larry, the Downing Street cat, meets the player at the door and sets the quest: find ballot boxes scattered around the world and bring them back to him.
- 4
The player fans out across the map hunting for hidden ballot boxes, then must physically pick each one up and carry it back to Larry rather than simply collecting it, turning the search into an item-carrying challenge through obstacles.
- 5
Along the way, the player encounters avatars of BBC News presenters Laura Kuenssberg, Clive Myrie, and Jeremy Vine, who share facts about how elections work.
- 6
Once the player delivers enough ballot boxes, Larry joins as a companion pet that stays with them in the game.
- 7
Outside the quest, the player moves through Wonder Chase's regular loop: running obby obstacle courses, collecting BBC iPlayer-themed coins and collectible stickers, watching show clips in a cinema, and socializing with friends.
