Tag Archives: games

The Best of Raph Koster’s Web Site

If you’re interested in game design, you should know Raph Koster. Full stop.

Koster made his reputation working on Ultima Online and augmented it through his work on Star Wars Galaxies (where he worked as Chief Creative Officer). To my mind, though, some of his greatest contributions come via his writing on games and game theory. His deceptively simple A Theory of Fun remains, IMO, one of the best ways to introduce game design to neophytes. But on his personal web site, he has written over a quarter-million words, most of it devoted to elucidating some large or small idea about game design. It’s accessible to non-specialists, well-written (he double-majored in Creative Writing and Spanish, the second of which must have taught him excellent grammar!) , and smart without being precious. Most importantly, it’s content-rich. I could imagine using his blog to supply many readings for a graduate class on game design.

Koster’s done would-be game designers a service by selecting some of his best posts on game theory and design and collecting them under a single heading, which you can access by clicking the link below:

http://www.raphkoster.com/2012/03/15/the-best-articles/

Computer games ‘improving pupils’ GCSE results’

Pupils with regular access to games based on traditional favourites such as space invaders and penalty shoot-outs significantly improved their scores in GCSE English, maths and science, it was revealed.

Teachers said the use of the system – employed by some 900 primary and secondary schools – promoted “stealth learning”, with children unwittingly picking up key skills while being engrossed in computer games.

via Computer games ‘improving pupils’ GCSE results’ – Telegraph.

How Online Gaming Can Teach Kids About the Economy

There are numerous educational games designed to teach children about various financial practices. For example, there is the education-based economics simulator, Beat the Market Online or the World Game of Economics simulator that teaches about exchange rates and economic policies between countries.

These games do have value, but they often miss the opportunity to provide real, hands-on experience with the marketplace because they do not foster free trading between real players. More importantly, most students will recognize them immediately for what they are: educational tools. While some kids are willing to learn in this way, many balk at the notion of an educational game because it feels too much like homework.

The most valuable tool is actually more nuanced, and lies within games that children are already interested in playing. Sites like Neopets or Gaia Online attract millions of users of all ages, and popular multi-player online games like World of Warcraft have a massive draw for kids and adults alike.

via How Online Gaming Can Teach Kids About the Economy – Forbes.