http://www.gamesforchange.org/play - 0 views
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christine liao on 24 Feb 09Akrasia This is a must-play game. I LOVE this game. It is a piece of artwork that is very thought provoking. It didn't present the intent directly, but the meaning of the game is emerging though the play. At first, you might need to spend some time to figure out what happen, and from my experience, even if I knew the goal is to find the exit, I would enjoy just play in the joyful environment. This reflects the psychology of addiction (and a lot of other things also applicable). I think the game is a good lesson content itself. It not only can function as a way to motive students, but also can provide a lot of dialogues and discussion after playing the game. BTW, This reminds me an art piece "Game, game, game, and again game" http://www.secrettechnology.com/gamegame/gamegame6.html
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Elizabeth Andrews on 02 Mar 09Your comments really interested me in playing this game. I have tried to get this to open on my computer without sucess. The profiles I was able to access, and the demos were beautiful.
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Energyville This is a sample game about energy planning. The objective is clear and direct. I found the game not so attractive to me, because although I can choose different energy to use in my city, there are many restrictions too. This is in fact the reality for considering energy source. My score is very poor ranked in compare to other people. I think through playing it many times, people will be able to learning from the mistakes and learn how to balance energy source. In a course content, since this game provide information about energy source, it can be a good way to teach these knowledge. Students can participate in challenge with peers. This will be more fun than reading a textbook or listening to a lecture.
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Energyville: I also played this game. This game was based around economics, the environment, and fuel usage. It was pretty effective with communicating its view, but I think it would have been better if designed a little differently. There was a lot of text and information to be gained from this site, which I found very useful. It explained pros and cons about each of the different fuel sources and how much it would challenge your city. I didn't have a good sense of how much money I had and was more concerned about meeting demand with supplies. I found the game fun to play and was able to take away a lot more concrete information form this game then the other game. I felt like this game was directly providing knowledge, while the other game I played was indirectly teaching me something. This could be incorporated into a unit about economics, environmental science/art, social change, globalism, etc. Since this game provides direct facts and information, this game could fit into any structured educational environment. Students who play the game, as long as they read, will be able to learn impact from fuel use, what is using most fuels in cities, and possibly solutions. I agree that this would be a great supplement to reading a text book.
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Ayiti: The Cost of Life. It is based around the idea of poverty in Haiti and how difficult it is for families to get past it. I played this game three times, and every single time I lost, my whole family died. I could not get past the 3rd year without having my whole entire family die. I created different strategies each time. The first time, I thought education was so important, so I tried to get the three kids in school for at least 2 out of the 4 times the seasons changed. The family ran out of money, then got too sick to work, and they ended up all dying. The second time, I decided to split up the family, have one child go to school and the other 4 work. This strategy worked a little better, but same result. Last try, I worked everyone and tried to create enough money for the family to live off of, but unfortunately, once someone is sick, you cannot seem to make them better without a few seasons in the hospital, which is expensive. I am interested to see if someone else who plays this gets a different result! Anyways, I thought this game was fun, but frustrating. It really did show how difficult it can be to get a family out of trouble, especially with 3 children, living expensive, health concerns, and education. Since I played 3 times and failed all of them, I would say it is very effective in communicating its view. This game could be incorporated in a unit about social change, human rights, poverty, living conditions in 3rd world countries, etc. Students could play this game and get a broad idea on what it could be like taking responsibility for a family. I think this may be a good introduction to what people in other areas could be facing since learning is indirect.
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Right, Ashley. I also could not win if even one of family member studies continuously. I could win when I focus only on family's health and economy.
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3rd world farmer: This game gives the user the ability to place himself or herself in the life of a farmer in a 3rd world country where having a shed or electricity is a luxury. Where $50 spent on a shed can mean your wife can't get medication. The game discusses the gamble farmers living in a 3rd world country have from year to year, when their livelihood and health depend on their crops or livestock. This came can be an asset in a classroom discussion focused around global conflicts and or an agriculture lesson. The game can be sued to experience farming through someone else's eyes. This game gave me the change to reflect on my education as a young student, and remember played the RPG The Oregon Trail. This game was similar in theory to the 3rd world farmer because the user became a character in the game, their was thought and critical analysis of a situation that went along with the play aspect of using computer games or game systems.
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The Garbage game: The garbage game allows students to visually see what impact and decisions they can make even before the garbage truck is introduced as an option for trash removal. The game was interactive, and allowed the player to think, but I don't really think that it would be very effective. The images used are cartoonified, and doesn't really reflect the true amount of garbage dealt with on a daily basis. I think that is this was used as an introduction or supplement to a lesson on recycling or environmental sciences it could be useful, but don't believe it is engaging enough to keep students attention for a long period of time.