“Nurse, time for 20 cc’s of Halo 3.” This isn’t strictly speaking journalism-related, but I thought it was cool all the same . . . Kotaku reports that some video games are more effective than drugs at controlling pain. And the research comes from Canada, no less. Aren’t we canucks clever? Video Games Treat Pain […]
Read more "Video Games as Effective as Morphine"I should have linked this all earlier, but it’s time for a belated introduction: meet Ian Bogost, who has some interesting things to say about serious games. Says he: “We tend to think of the world in terms of sound bites and simplistic ideas. Video games allow us to model complexity.” He’s the one who […]
Read more "“Video games allow us to model complexity”"If you still think games can’t transmit serious messages, try this. Not much more to say. Just PLAY IT. Update: Passage is getting some choice reviews in the gaming blogosphere, like this one. And this, and this plea from Ian Bogost. Funny how it’s the sort of game that makes everyone quietly say ‘Please play […]
Read more "Passage"Channel 4 Education has just announced that they’re scrapping a load of television content in favour of interactive web offerings. Media Guardian has the details. They’re cancelling a lot of Education TV – which makes sense, as most of it was on while the kids were in school. (How did that seem like a good […]
Read more "Channel 4 – Scores!"(OK, this is getting heavily theoretical here, but I’ve been thinking about this lately.) An ARG is an interactive narrative experience that involves the audience directly in the action, and whose interface with the audience is not limited by medium. I think this limited-interface thing is really key to ARGs, and part of what makes […]
Read more "What is an ARG?"Alternate reality games. Everybody is into these now. Even the BBC has become infected with ARG fever – Radio 1 did a nice little number with Frozen Indigo Angel this summer. Worked with some real pros. There’s good reason for the infatuation. ARGs have a demonstrated ability to attract huge audiences and generate huge buzz. […]
Read more "Flavour of the Month is . . . ARG"With thanks to John Thynne for his recent mail: “It strikes me that games like Insurgency and America’s Army are still shoot-em-ups even if their story line has a current affairs theme.” It’s true – the most successful games out there are shoot-em-ups, serious game or not. Half-Life and the Halo series spring to mind. […]
Read more "Entering the Genre Wars"Hope you liked the presentation. The slides are available here. I’m always happy to talk about it if you have any comments, questions, observations, reactions or responses. You can get my mail in the About section. Go on and check out the other posts if you’re in the mood for some more in-depth ramblings on […]
Read more "Video Games and Current Affairs"I just found this interesting interview about America’s Army. It’s with Marsha Berry, the game’s software manager. Says Marsha: “The goal for America’s Army was always to create an innovative and entertaining way to educate the public about the Army. We uphold the strictest standards for our game and make sure it enforces the Army’s […]
Read more "More on America’s Army"Insurgency is a 3D shooter game set in contemporary Iraq. You play either a US Marine or an Iraqi insurgent and fight it out. You can see the trailer here or DL a hi-res version here. Now, the interesting thing about this is that the whole project was started by a soldier who’d come back […]
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Philip Trippenbach 