I'd like to kick off my research on educational games with a look into the Wellcome Trust - an organisation funded by the scientific successes of Sir Henry Wellcome - and their collection of thought provoking games featured on their website. I have already looked into their game Axon (see Medical Simulation post). Now to look at their other games;
By placing the player in a position of control (with the games own set of restraints and demands) it gives the player a new perspective of the historical content of the game which history books alone cannot fully provide. This game brings to life the struggles of import and export at the time of the expanding British Empire - it makes no prior judgements of the actions of either side - it instead lays out all the facts for the player in an easy to read UI (see above). The actions of the player however are brought to conclusion at the end of the game with a dark statement of how many lives you have corrupted through your import/export business;
"I appreciate that at the end of the game, it tells you how many opium users you have caused to be addicted. - posted by honest knave at 12:11 AM on February 14, 2012" . 2013. . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.metafilter.com/100524/Opium-Silver-Tea. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
Here are some findings in the Analytical report written to collate the response to High Tea found here; . 2013. . [ONLINE] Available at: http://museumgames.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/44614076/HighTeaEvaluationReport.pdf. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
"• Players were stimulated to find out more about the 19th-century opium trade and
wars.
• The game created genuine discussion about its subject matter in gaming and other
forums.
• Through developing High Tea we have discovered new ways of creatively
collaborating, marrying our content knowledge to games development expertise.
• Some players' feelings about British history were changed as a result of playing
the game.
• The reaction and discussion around the game carried on beyond game portals, on
blogs and forums, often in unexpected ways."
"Though many comments focused on the game play, a substantial number discussed the history and economics or expressed satisfaction that they were playing a game with a factual basis, and learning something whilst having fun."
The fact that a "player's feelings" were changed as a result of playing the game is the most interesting to me, in the way that it shows that the potential for games to influence and educate in a non-confrontational way is far from reached! If games enable their players to "learn whilst having fun" - shouldn't this be further exploited and explored by educators?
Case Study - High Tea - Preloaded - Games with purpose. 2013. Case Study - High Tea - Preloaded - Games with purpose. [ONLINE] Available at: http://preloaded.com/games/high-tea/. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
Here is an abridged quote from the above website explaining the core gamplay;
"You are invited to take control of your own Independent Trading company off the shores of the Pearl River Delta, leading up to the beginning of the first Opium war in 1838. Broker the best opium deals possible for sale in China, then buy as much tea as possible to send home and keep Britain happy!
Aims of the game are to make money and increase your fleet through trading opium in return for silver, and maintain Britain's happiness levels by feeding its relentless demand for tea. Various opium deals appear and disappear on the game map, and players must evaluate whether or not to accept them. Some deals have risks attached which can result in being busted by the authorities, so be careful!"
"Results
The project set out to demonstrate the power of games to engage a broad audience on a difficult historical subject. The success criteria will mix game metrics with qualitative research including user-surveys, anecdotal evidence and outreach studies.
The results have been very encouraging, with gameplays reaching over a million in the first week of release and topical debate springing up as the game begins to proliferate."
The bold statement above wonderfully demonstrates the ability of games to be able to subtly put across a viewpoint which might not be so engaging to an audience if revealed from the start.
High Tea (Wellcome Trust);
http://neurobonkers.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/hightea.jpg
By placing the player in a position of control (with the games own set of restraints and demands) it gives the player a new perspective of the historical content of the game which history books alone cannot fully provide. This game brings to life the struggles of import and export at the time of the expanding British Empire - it makes no prior judgements of the actions of either side - it instead lays out all the facts for the player in an easy to read UI (see above). The actions of the player however are brought to conclusion at the end of the game with a dark statement of how many lives you have corrupted through your import/export business;
"I appreciate that at the end of the game, it tells you how many opium users you have caused to be addicted. - posted by honest knave at 12:11 AM on February 14, 2012" . 2013. . [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.metafilter.com/100524/Opium-Silver-Tea. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
Here are some findings in the Analytical report written to collate the response to High Tea found here; . 2013. . [ONLINE] Available at: http://museumgames.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/44614076/HighTeaEvaluationReport.pdf. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
"• Players were stimulated to find out more about the 19th-century opium trade and
wars.
• The game created genuine discussion about its subject matter in gaming and other
forums.
• Through developing High Tea we have discovered new ways of creatively
collaborating, marrying our content knowledge to games development expertise.
• Some players' feelings about British history were changed as a result of playing
the game.
• The reaction and discussion around the game carried on beyond game portals, on
blogs and forums, often in unexpected ways."
"Though many comments focused on the game play, a substantial number discussed the history and economics or expressed satisfaction that they were playing a game with a factual basis, and learning something whilst having fun."
The fact that a "player's feelings" were changed as a result of playing the game is the most interesting to me, in the way that it shows that the potential for games to influence and educate in a non-confrontational way is far from reached! If games enable their players to "learn whilst having fun" - shouldn't this be further exploited and explored by educators?
Case Study - High Tea - Preloaded - Games with purpose. 2013. Case Study - High Tea - Preloaded - Games with purpose. [ONLINE] Available at: http://preloaded.com/games/high-tea/. [Accessed 6 February 2013].
Here is an abridged quote from the above website explaining the core gamplay;
"You are invited to take control of your own Independent Trading company off the shores of the Pearl River Delta, leading up to the beginning of the first Opium war in 1838. Broker the best opium deals possible for sale in China, then buy as much tea as possible to send home and keep Britain happy!
Aims of the game are to make money and increase your fleet through trading opium in return for silver, and maintain Britain's happiness levels by feeding its relentless demand for tea. Various opium deals appear and disappear on the game map, and players must evaluate whether or not to accept them. Some deals have risks attached which can result in being busted by the authorities, so be careful!"
"Results
The project set out to demonstrate the power of games to engage a broad audience on a difficult historical subject. The success criteria will mix game metrics with qualitative research including user-surveys, anecdotal evidence and outreach studies.
The results have been very encouraging, with gameplays reaching over a million in the first week of release and topical debate springing up as the game begins to proliferate."
The bold statement above wonderfully demonstrates the ability of games to be able to subtly put across a viewpoint which might not be so engaging to an audience if revealed from the start.
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