From text based, to graphic adventure games, to action adventure and role play games RPGs. There really is a lot of gaming content and genre to explore. To date I have really enjoyed text based adventures because I get to create the game environment, or at least interpret the game environment.
Graphic adventures fell short, the action adventure games were a positive and the RPGs the only ‘game type’ I have played with my wife, (apart from jigsaws and mancala but I don’t think they count?). My wife is a dab hand and cryptic problem solving, perhaps that is why she is such a fantastic accountant, and the iPad makes for a great point and click tap game play? Together, as a team, we feel we have accomplished something when we beat the game.
I have also taught with RPGs such as Bow Street Runners and created marque lessons around games, they can be very powerful introductions to learning, I know like Dawn Hallybone is doing great and varied things with Games Based Learning not to mention the more frequent references to Tim Rylands use of Myst and the creative physics lessons based on Angry Birds and here too. There are many other great education RPG examples such online safety with smokescreen or community involvement with The Curfew Game.
The main focus of the RPGs seems to be problem solving skills with frequent failures a valued strategy for progress. Try, fail, try again only better. It seems that inventive problem solving is a key skill and certainly, as educators we keep hearing about the importance of developing creativity in young people, (hat tip to the numerous TEDTalks) could RPGs be a tool to measure creativity? All this debate before we embrace the big leagues, massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG).
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