On Instructional Video Games

The New York Times (registration required), is running an article entitled Is Instructional Video Game an Oxymoron?. In it they discuss the increasingly high profile that games are playing in educational and conciousness raising situations. From the article: "Stop Fluin' Around, which arrived in December, is one of dozens of instructional online games that public interest organizations, advocacy groups and government agencies say have become the best way to reach a generation of children and teenagers weaned on video games and the Web."

Comments

from the mario-teaches-with-mushrooms dept.?

[game kid]

Someone's been playing Mario is Missing lately. I did once long ago, but never got through much of it. Some geography stuff (like where the Transamerica building is and the like), mixed in with walking around a city and the occasional Koopa, from the little I played. Not exactly a disease-prevention game, but I think I learned a thing or three.

Some have been successful

[cuteseal]

Some have been successful in the past... I can think of the Carmen Sandiego series to name one...

These days it's all about money and profits though, and if edu-tainment doesn't pay, then you'll have a hard time getting game warehouses to finance you...