Mr. OCL: An Escape Room Board Game for Teaching Object Constraints

• Victor Travassos Sarinho UEFS

DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/se4games.2026.32914

Resumo

The Object Constraint Language (OCL) plays a fundamental role in Model-Driven Software Engineering by enabling the formal specification of invariants, preconditions, and postconditions over UML models. However, its declarative nature and high level of abstraction make OCL difficult to teach and learn. Although game-based learning has been successfully applied to several Software Engineering topics, educational games specifically designed to support collaborative learning of OCL remain scarce. This paper presents Mr. OCL, an escape room-inspired board game that teaches formal object constraints through progressively structured challenges based on UML class and object diagrams. Players collaboratively solve each challenge by constructing sequences of action cards governed by OCL contracts, while a Game Master validates their logical consistency. A preliminary classroom evaluation based on the MEEGA+ model revealed positive student perceptions regarding engagement, collaboration, and perceived learning, suggesting that Mr. OCL is a promising approach that warrants further investigation through controlled studies of OCL learning outcomes.

Palavras-chave: Object Constraint Language, Gamification, Software Engineering Education, Escape Room, Board Games

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