Mike Bantick
Monday, 30 June 2008 15:43
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 3
It is a tried and true formula; linking activities we love to do with a learning process. Now game developer/publisher Capcom hopes that a whole new market, subliminal learning through gaming can be exploited.
Generally the gap between educational and relaxing/fun gaming has been somewhat wide.
Try as they might, creators of educational software tend to fully capture the imagination of a participant. No matter how glitzy, or ‘game like’ in its structure, usually the educational subject matter is a give-away to the ‘player’. Rarely would such a title be chosen over a Halo or Call of Duty when a choice is offered.
Sometimes it works, Much history can be gleaned from a Civilization game, and much fun can be had in some of the educational games of yore. Hands up those who whiled away many an hour playing Lemonade Stand on the Apple ][.
After observing game testing of their new Wii game We Love Golf, Capcom believe a whole new wave of educational games are just on the horizon.
In
We Love Golf, players need to make complex calculations about ball flight, trajectory and distance. As the gamer continued to play, they got markedly better at making these calculations, allowing for wind and playing surface to determine how hard or where to hit the ball. Actually, this is simply playing golf, but the Capcom team reckon this sublime process can be utilised further.
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