game+ideas

//Thoughts about new games. Feel free to edit or add your ideas.//

This could be an adaptation or extension of the map game. Go back in time and start off with an old map of Africa, carved up by the colonial powers. Then over time the map changes, the names of the countries change. Could be a good way to represent important historical events in Africa. How to incorporate general knowledge and colonial history into the game play? This suggestion from Barry arising from discussion of the map game at SOSE faculty at WHS - Bill 21 Nov
 * HISTORY OF COLONIALISM**

Keep in mind some of the feedback to the name game (from lindsay, tony) in connection with this idea

Make a game which teaches the facts about HIV/AIDS. Studies show that those who believe that you can get an HIV infection by sharing a meal with an HIV/AIDS patient have discriminatory attitudes towards the illness. See this extract from an article on our links page.
 * HIV/AIDS GAME**

This would involve researching the real facts about HIV/AIDS, designing and making a game to teach those facts and then distributing the game amongst those who aren't aware of the facts.

I've downloaded two pdfs from the blogswana site links which they contain quizzes and other information that we could use in making a game about HIV/AIDS http://202.136.7.26/images/jhpn2104_prevalence.pdf http://www.bioline.org.br/request?ep04018

__**CRITIQUE**__

I have a concern that simple name or border games may miss the mark in helping Africa deal with the bigger issues of poverty, AIDS and malaria. European nations created and imposed these whilst staking out their claims on a young African during its colonial history. I challenged my nervous year 10/11 students to brainstorm a swag of ideas for important issues for their first gamemaker project. It would be interesting to see what they come up with. (Roland 1 May 2006)

Thanks for expressing concerns Roland and apologies for my tardy reply. Two thoughts in response: //Ideological//: Just about everyone already knows about poverty and AIDS in Africa. Africa is pigeon holed by many as the continent of "moral concern". See the quote and link on the home page. I'd like to present a view that avoids stereotypes and is a bit fresh. I'm not saying that these issues should be ignored but would like to think and discuss more about how to present them. //Practical//: Just trying to start off with a simple mini game that is doable and plan to move onto something more complex in the future. (Bill 6thMay 2006)

__**Some fun map and geography games**__

http://geography.about.com/cs/games/tp/aatp042702.htm (Top 6 Geography computer games) http://geography.about.com/cs/games/index.htm (Geography quizzes) http://www.surfnetkids.com/geogames.htm (Fun Geography games) http://www.yourchildlearns.com/geography.htm (Map puzzles)

posted onto the QLD games list by Mark Piper.

__**GENERAL IDEAS**__

If anyone else is planning minigames such as this then let us know here so we avoid overlap and develop collaboration. Thanks Tony for the minigame idea (Bill 19thApr)

As a result of receiving some interesting and inspirational mail over the past few days I'm now thinking that I / we ought to plan for:
 * a relatively simple game programmed in [|Game Maker] (my initial plan was to [|model something for my year 11s]) - the time line for this would be the end of semester 2 in South Australia, 8 weeks from now
 * a more complex game, perhaps a social challenge simulation programmed in an open source web compatible language such as [|squeak] - longer time line, whatever it takes

//Name of your game?//
 * Curious about Africa?
 * [|Ubuntu], the game ("humanity to others", "I am what I am because of who we all are")
 * Building a School in Africa

//What are you going to teach? Provide details//
 * basic geography and demography facts
 * the humanitarian situation, some details
 * the politics of Africa
 * Dilemma facing schools in Africa, important role played by women, poverty, disease, literacy challenges etc (Roland)
 * the idea that Africa is a large, diverse country, that it is difficult to generalise and important to avoid stereotypes such as Africa = poverty (Bill 20thApr)

//How are you going to teach it? Details//
 * show and tell followed by quiz for basics (behaviourist / instructionist)
 * build Africa from a jigsaw (constructionist)
 * shame file (the UN does not look good)
 * I have not thought hard about the game play yet
 * Series of social challenges that overwhelm the player - limited money, AIDS, orphans, huge classes, no clean water, limited or no secondary schooling. Something like the Sims, probably too ambitious and I dont want to oversimplify the problem.(Roland)
 * a number of minigames could be connected through a 3D maze game or similar. Completing a minigame would unlock further levels of the maze or quest. All the ideas above could be incorporated in this way. This would give an opportunity for teachers and students to collaborate on a project and for inter-school collaboration. The project would become open ended.(Tony)
 * surprises, little known information with emphasis on the positive, achievements (Bill 20thApr)

//Who is your target audience? Identify at least one real person//

First up I will check that two African students in my Year 10 homegroup like what I am making

SOCIAL CONSCIENCE GAMES
http://www.globalkids.org/olp/past/playing4keeps.jsp Playing 4 Keeps is an innovative youth media project, in which a team of Global Kids Leaders at South Shore High School are gaining leadership and game design skills that they will use to develop and produce a socially conscious online game each year. Once produced, the game will have the potential to educate thousands of young people about a critical global issue.

The mission of Global Kids is to prepare urban youth to become global citizens and community leaders. Global Kids, Inc. works to ensure that young people of diverse backgrounds have the knowledge, skills, and experiences they need to succeed in the workplace and participate in the shaping of public policy and international relations.