Why Games Matter

By: Derek Yu

On: November 7th, 2007

Changemakers is an initiative set up by Ashoka, an international network of “social entrepreneurs,” and one of the projects they’re working on is an online community that holds competitions to “surface the best social solutions, and then collaborates to refine, enrich, and implement those solutions.”

Recently, they held a competition called “”http://www.changemakers.net/en-us/competition/healthgames">Why Games Matter: A Prescription for Improving Health and Health Care," which, unfortunately, is practically over (just got wind of it recently). But you can still check out the 14 finalists and 74 total entries. The winners will be announced tomorrow.

The finalists are pretty various, and include the previously covered Ayiti: The Cost of Life, and Persuasive Games’s Fatworld (depicted above in all its childboob glory). There’s also a series of mobile games to bring AIDS/HIV awareness to cellphone users in India. (As well as a massively multiplayer online Bollywood-themed dancing game WTF?)

I’m always interested in hearing about the application of games to areas other than entertainment! These kinds of initiatives warm my jaded game-maker’s heart. It still seems like there’s a lot of growing to do, however, before we start seeing some truly compelling “social games.”

Operation: Pedopriest

By: Derek Yu

On: October 12th, 2007

From the title of the game, you might expect that you’re playing to stop the pedophile priests, but actually, you’re playing to cover up the sexual abuse of the horny paters. This, as you can imagine, changes things quite a bit.

Quote Ian Bogost:

Operation: Pedopriest is definitely disturbing to play, and the cartoony graphics do little to mitigate the how awful it all feels. Which isn’t a condemnation of the game itself, mind you – I’m quite certain this is the exact reaction developer Molleindustria was going for. It does make it quite a mixed bag of gaming peanuts, though – do I even WANT to win at this?

The game mechanics are quite simple, and involve clicking “eunuchs” around to distract adults and police officers while the clergy is molesting children. When things get really bad, you can airlift a priest out of there to go hide out in the Vatican. When a certain number of priests are arrested before the given time limit runs out, it’s game over.

You know, I just figured there wasn’t enough controversy on TIGSource…

(Source: Play This Thing!)

Playing Columbine

By: Derek Yu

On: October 3rd, 2007

A 13-minute excerpt from Danny Ledonne’s upcoming documentary about his controversial game.

Uh oh?

(Source: Play This Thing!)

Grow Island

By: Derek Yu

On: September 19th, 2007

Created to introduce prospective students to the curriculum of Shibaura Institute of Technology, Grow Island is another fantastic addition to Eyezmaze’s Grow series of games. Um, wow, yeah – sign me up for the class where I pave a railroad in a giant robot!

As usual, a walkthrough is provided by the readers of Jay is Games!

Real Lives

By: Derek Yu

On: July 16th, 2007

Real Lives is a “life simulator” that puts you in the shoes of someone, somewhere in the world. Who you are, where you’re born, and to who are based on real life statistics, as well as the random events that may happen to you. The interface is quite simple, the most prominent feature being a giant map in the center of the screen. Everything else is text and icons and buttons.

The most important button is the “Advance an Age” button, which you will be using to move forward in your life. As you get older, various choices and options will be presented to you – everything from schooling to finances to who you date and marry and have (or not have) children with. Of course, what you’re able to do depends heavily on where you start out, and at any moment tragedy can strike.

The game, as simple as it is, is incredibly compelling, and very sobering. In my first game, I was quite fortunate, having been born in a middle class family in Slovakia. I died at age 61 of rheumatoid arthritis as a well-to-do police captain with three healthy daughters. In my latest game, however, I’ve been born as a girl to an extremely poor family in rural China, and things are going to be difficult. Being beaten, raped, arrested, or contracting a fatal disease is not uncommon. It’s brutal.

As I said above, the game is based on real life statistics, and as you’re playing you can view those statistics as each event occurs. If you get food poisoning in Slovakia (as I did quite a few times), you can see statistics about what percentage of people like you living in Slovakia get food poisoning each year. The context in which the information is presented makes it so much less dry than if you read it in a periodical.

Real Lives works on a lot of levels: as a game, a simulation, and an educational tool. It also has the incredible potential to increase awareness and human empathy. So it wins pretty hard, all around!

The demo (available as a direct link from this Something Awful thread) is free to play for as long as you like, although if you want access to the character creator, you have to pay $25 for the registered version (via the first link). And here’s a thread I started on our forums for you to post your own “Real Lives.” Everyone should post their first!

(Source: Soldat Movies)

World Without Oil

By: Derek Yu

On: May 24th, 2007

“Play it before you live it” is the mantra behind World Without Oil, an ARG (Alternate Reality Game) that simulates a world oil crisis. Users submit stories via text, audio, or video describing events unfolding during the pretend crisis, and the game’s admins rank users based on how well their content fits with the reality of the game.

An interesting idea that I’m sure is worth trying! It sounds like a lot of fun… crowd-sourcing a real-world problem through role-playing and creative writing.

(Source: GameSetWatch)

Interview: Two of the Most Hated Game Creators Alive

By: Derek Yu

On: May 18th, 2007

Destructoid has an interview with Danny Ledonne, creator of Super Columbine Massacre RPG, and Ryan Lambourn, creator of V-Tech Shooting.

I find it interesting that Ledonne is very articulate and Lambourn is… well, he did it for the “lulz.” Neither game is a success, in my opinion, from a gameplay perspective or a social perspective. What they’ve proved is that games can create discussion and cause controversy… is that something that needs to be proven?

I find this screenshot from V-Tech Rampage to be extremely ironic.

(Thanks, Felan, for the heads-up!)

Gem Theory

By: Derek Yu

On: May 15th, 2007

Jesper Juul, video game academic and self-proclaimed “”http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludology">ludologist", has written an article titled “”http://www.jesperjuul.net/text/swapadjacent/“>Swap Adjacent Gems to Make Sets of Three: A History of Matching Tile Games.”

I’m actually really fascinated by game studies. Actually, it’s more like I’m alternately fascinated and repulsed by game studies. It’s very interesting and there are real positive, tangible effects to analyzing games from an academic perspective. On the other hand, a lot of it is absolute baloney!

(Source: GameSetWatch)

Scientology PWNED… PWNED

By: Derek Yu

On: May 15th, 2007

Zi-Xiao Liang, creator of Scientology PWNED, has informed me that his game (in which you blow away the faithful followers of Xenu) was the target of local police, who are making him change the name of the game.

I don’t really have an opinion either way, but I suggest that the name of the game be changed to “American McGee’s Scientology PWNED,” therefore putting all the blame squarely on American McGee. And because we also need more games that have American McGee’s name in the title!

Check out this IGDA thread for more info.

Peacemaker

By: Derek Yu

On: May 2nd, 2007

Peacemaker is a game that simulates the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

When I hear about a game made around a real-life sociopolitical issue or event, I always alternately get this feeling of excitement and dread. Excitement because I think of the potential and dread because I think about the general lack of sensitivity in the game industry at large. There’s also the problem that a commercial game company would never make a serious game about politics, but then most indie game companies lack the experience and resources to make one that’s good.

Case in point: SCRPG, which we can all agree was just too ugly and hastily made to bring anything but flames down on the game industry. Controversy is great, but did we learn anything from that game? I didn’t.

Thankfully, Peacemaker, which was created by a Carnegie Mellon student and is now being sold at its website for $19.95, seems to have been crafted thoughtfully and objectively, with regard for both the conflict as well as the game’s design and presentation. I’m not very far into the demo, so it’s hard for me to gauge how well it works as a strategy game, but the theme and presentation makes the game incredibly compelling. In terms of educating people about the conflict and expanding the genre of sociopolitical games, Peacekeeper is a monumental success, I believe.

Here’s a nice Gamasutra article that goes into more detail about the gameplay of Peacemaker.