Leonardo Da Vinci life, works and time are ideal sources for inspiration for games and videogames. Not only for that, of course: any media can treat the Da Vinci theme, and books, movies, documentaries, even theatrical pieces deal directly or have taken inspiration from Leonardo and his times.
Leonardo was not a unique, isolated case of creativity: the birth of Renaissance in Italy testifies a host of inventors and artists, and more you get to know this extraordinary period, more you will discover.
As I believe games are under utilized as a way to explore knowledge and history, I started a Facebook page that presents what is being done in games and “playful” media on the theme of Leonardo and the Renaissance. Helped by Leonardo’s researcher Alexander Neuwahl, I’ve collected a seemingly never ending collection of funny, bizarre and entertaining list of works and references. You find it in full glory here:
https://www.facebook.com/DaVinciGames
There is more then Leonardo as presented in Assassin’s Creed. If you persist scrolling down the Facebook page, you’ll find it hard to get to the end of it!
You’ll find games, jokes, riddles, books, simulations, experiments, models, documentaries, buildings…
I’ve also been doing some game design on Renaissance / Leonardo themed games, but this is the topic for another post- follow me on Twitter to keep in touch.