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Nintendo Developing DS Apps For School Systems
MojoKid writes "Shigeru Miyamoto, who has had a hand in some of Nintendo's most popular titles, recently offered that he is working hard to turn Nintendo's DS line of handheld gaming machines into tools for schools. The DS already has a nice line of educational software titles that help users learn, and he thinks that this could really be a huge benefit to schools looking for alternative ways to educate students of a new generation. The company has already managed to get them into Japanese elementary schools."
I'm not sure I see how this would help Nintendo. Doesn't every school-age kid already have a DS? It sure seems that way among all the kids I've seen lately...
Maybe if the school versions were remotely monitored? The teacher could use a DSi XL to view 93% more students!
The fact that this hasn't been pushed for before is rather surprising. The DS has been one of the most cost-effective digital kanji dictionaries for years. It costs about half as much as most comparable touch-screen devices and, obviously, it has other uses as well. It's right at the top of the list of tools for non-native speakers trying to learn Japanese, so it seems only natural that it would be at home in Japanese classrooms as well.
I just want another Mario Teaches Typing.
They should call the Nintendo DS a "Macintosh" and say that it has all kinds of educational software. They will get loads of sales to schools.
That strategy kept Apple afloat for two decades before they invented the iPod.
Just make sure the 'DS comes with WYSIWG text editor, and a primitive paint program with a brick tileset and "spraypaint" brush. Bonus points if they revert to black and white.
Normally, I laugh off reports like this. But if Miyamoto says he's doing it, I give it a high probability of working. The guy is a damn genius. And seeing he did the impossible and brought old people into gaming with titles like Wii Sports, I think he may even actually pull off an educational game that's worth a damn.
I still have more fans than freaks. WTF is wrong with you people?
I didn't buy a DS to read a f**king cook book on it. I bought it to play VIDEO GAMES. I want to play n+ and ninja around killer robots. I want to play Peggle and other fun games. :D
Nintendo is a company dear to many of our hearts since many of us are nostalgic for their early games. They've continued to innovate in game play and still provide a lot of pleasure in leisure time. That being said, they are only rivaled by Apple in their record of locking down their proprietary systems. In gaming, it's not a big deal but in education, it's another story.
In education, we need to avoid putting up artificial walls where they needn't exist. Children should be free to explore as long as they're not a danger to themselves or others. That's why free software is essential in education. It encourages cooperation, learning, and exploration. I fear that Nintendo is going to continue to lock down their systems when they're used in an educational setting and if that's the case, we should skip it. There's nothing worse than a teacher having to answer a question with, "That's just the way Nintendo made it I guess."
That being said, they are only rivaled by Apple in their record of locking down their proprietary systems
Not even Apple is a rival. Apple compares more to Microsoft; in fact, the iPhone developer program was a dead ringer for XNA Creators Club on the Xbox 360. Nintendo won't let you in unless you're an established company with a "secure business location" (specifically not a home office) and a published commercial title on another platform (citation).
Namely that it's marketed to get you good at a language but even if you go through all three levels, you may have attained 15% fluency. I used it only a few hours - does anybody have more experience?
Do they plan to release a programming language? That is part of what made TI calculators so popular. Nintendo could learn from that model. (Well, before TI DRM'd them)
It's a noble cause, but there are questions as to whether or not Brain Age and its ilk work as advertised. Some have found success in improving math scores. Still, results are inconclusive. Given how strapped our schools are for cash right now, it's hard see them snapping up a bunch of DS' and software for questionable benefits.
This is your official GOATSE WARNING to all those half asleep. I hadn't even had my coffee yet and didn't want anyone else to be scared awake.
Nowadays there's a standard bargain in place that should make it easier to get something like this through.
The school administrators will give the students gaming machines, and in return will get to look at the students naked.
The DS comes with a camera, so there should be no problems pitching this problem to school perverts^H^H^H^H^H^H^H^Hadministrators.
It's rare that you're presented with a knob whose only two positions are Make History and Flee Your Glorious Destiny.
From a business perspective, why hasn't Nintendo already chased the education market?
But seriously, it is 2010, how about a device that has reasonable screen real estate and operating system?
We can build much better devices, even at a reasonable cost. Let us start with a screen big enough to read something on, at least 5" if not bigger. Second we need a programmable OS to run on these, Android, Win 7 new mobile OS, New Palm, even an apple tablet.
A couple years ago I would have thought great. Today I would be really upset if my school district spent my tax dollars on this.
A DSi: Graphical device with touch screen, WiFi, Web Browser, 2 Cameras, SD card, Custom Cartridge. Does it have IR? Some kind of external port?
There was a embroidery sewing machine that used a GameBoy Color + custom cartridge as its computer. Many sewers back then (1999?) didn't have computers and adding a $200 GameBoy to a $2000 sewing machine was cheaper then a $1000 PC.
Palm PDAs with the infrared port have been used to simulate the spread of a disease through a population. Give all the students the PDAs running the App. One is infected. Everyone starts syncing IR. Now the class tries to find out who had the original infection.
A Palm with a serial port interface to sensors that collect information (button press as a ball rolls across it, sound waves, anything that can be timed).
Distributed quiz answering pads. Send class notes to everyone's DS to read at home. Quizes to research.
There has to be lots of things that can be done beyond "Educational" software.