WildQuest co-founder Denis Allaire has been a lover of the great outdoors for as long as he can remember.

“I enjoy nature hikes, I used to do 30-day and 45-day canoe trips when I was a teenager, so nature’s always been a part of something I enjoy doing,” Allaire told Global News.

Now, the St. Lawrence College Environmental Technician student is combining that love of nature with his passion for video games in WildQuest, a biodiversity game that gets players outside to photograph the wildlife they encounter.

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“It does a similar thing to (social networking site) iNaturalist in that it collects data, so for me, it’s a way of getting citizen scientists out in nature, playing with nature and adding more to do the data that’s already out there but in a fun and engaging way,” Allaire said.

The app uses artificial intelligence and biodiversity data to identify what players find, and then turns their photos into digital battle cards they can collect and compete with. The app has been active since July and has already attracted more than 200 users, not just in Canada and the U.S., but as far away as South Africa and Indonesia.

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“We’ve contacted a bunch of conservation authorities around the world,” added Allaire “A lot of their top executives really love the idea of it.”

And with the game’s official launch set for Sept. 22, the team is now looking to grow WildQuest, including holding talks with potential investors.