Abstract This Videogame is just like my plant!This paper presents a learning experience that was developed using the commercialvideogame Rise of Nations for a graduate course on Manufacturing and Operations Strategy.This is a historical strategy game in which players compete by taking civilizations throughprogressive development stages. The game was employed under the Serious Gamesparadigm, in which a game is considered serious when it is used with an objective other thanentertainment. This paper explains the objectives of the use of the game in the class, theregulations and learning guides that were employed, the experiences the students lived, themain points the students take away from the use of the game and other experiences that takeplace in the class in addition to the delivery of contents and development of skills.The game has been a valuable vehicle to elicit reflection and social interaction in the students.Several aspects of the game were designed by the instructors and identified by the students asvalid metaphors to their daily work in manufacturing companies: Nonlinear processes canproduce unexpected outcomes; the territory is an analogy to a specific market; efficiency inthe use of resources is key to success; building capabilities requires a strategic outlook;competition is fierce and never stops (if you don’t control some territory, your competitorwill). At the end of the course the students evaluate the use of the game, and for severalsemesters the common theme has been that “This videogame is just like my plant!” Thispaper presents the learning experience and the methodology that was employed, which couldeasily be applied to other serious games for manufacturing classes.