What we can learn from games.

Small design post has now gone online - using Football Manager 2015 to create useful pop up information boxes for learners!

What we can learn from "Papers, Please" New blog post focusing on the brand new iOS hit game! Available Here

Fantastic! I have subscribed can't wait to read more.

Thank you Tristan I'm glad you're enjoying it! Happy Holidays!

That's an awesome blog you've got there. But beyond just teaching game mechanics I think that games can teach a whole lot more. A game that came out this year called Valiant Hearts is a great example of how games can potentially use good storytelling to teach stuff like history and whatnot.

DJI phantom 2 Vision Plus

Absolutely agree with you Luke.

One of the most powerful storytelling games I've ever played is Telltale Games' Walking Dead. It's an absolute rollercoaster and simply because of the power of it's storytelling. It had me in tears (first time a video game has ever done this) and is a wonderful example.

Valiant Hearts is another great example of how powerful storytelling coupled with simple gameplay mechanics can draw you in to a story. I've considered featuring VH and may do some in the coming weeks. 

There is a huge amount that we can learn from games and you've hit the nail on the head. Simple methods that easily transition to our field.

New post coming soon looking at The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker and how Nintendo optimise the use of introductions.

It's now Ready! Check out the full post here - Gaming in Training

This is a fantastic series, Joshua. Really like the format, tone, pace, subject matter, and the way you're dealing with it with examples that illustrate transferable value. Love it.

I've always liked the way Extra Credits presents game characteristics and mechanics. Lost Garden presents a nice series on theory and comparison that might be helpful for reference.

Wish I had thought of this series myself. Keep it up!

Hello Steve, 

I just wanted to say thank you so much for the kind words. It means a lot to have such a respected member of the community speak so fondly about what I'm trying to do.

I've watched a lot of Extra Credit on YouTube and especially enjoyed the videos on MMO Quest shaping - it was a very insightful approach. There's definitely a lot to take from videos like EC because you can make the links to the projects or pieces you are working on at the time.

I've just put out a very quick update looking at Prison Architect again but this time two little design elements we can quickly pull out from it. The post is available here: Straight from a game into your E-Learning Bitesize Tip #2.

Again, thank you for the kind words Steve, I've got a huge grin on my face this morning as a result and I hope you continue reading and enjoying the content I put out.

I'm going to be releasing another post this weekend in the What We Can Learn From Games series.

New Blog Post Out Now - Looking at Decisions and Choice in E-Learning using The Walking Dead Video Game series. Using meaningful choices to create an engaging and successful E-Learning course.

You can view the blog post here.

As always your thoughts and comments are welcome, and if anyone wants any further information on this post please just get in touch with me on Twitter!

Joshua, just wanted to echo what Steve says.  I am enjoying enjoying these sadly Football Manager (lost too many hours to this one) and Zelda (my favourite series of all time) are the only two games I have played before (but I am  enjoying finding new games as well).

May have to download Walking dead onto my Fire TV.  I loved the piece on Zelda and must admit to having stolen many an idea from Zelda in the past. 

I would love to see some of your examples based on your posts, keep it up and keep posting

Thanks

Meant to post just after Steve but lost the thread, but knew it would come back up.

Thank you very much Phil - your comments are very much appreciated! 

For the Walking Dead - it's actually based on the game which you can get on around 30 different devices, PC/MAC/Android/iOS/PS4/PS3 etc etc etc. Do you have a Fire Tablet or through your TV box? I'd highly recommend it for anyone in E-Learning as the storytelling is absolutely unrivalled. It actually had me in tears at the end of season one of the game. Phil, you will not be disappointed and because the game is split into 5 "episodes" you don't need to feel as though you're committing a lot of time.

Zelda is also my favourite series of all time - Nintendo have a way of working in some of the most clever uses of narrative/exploration ever seen in video games. Aside from the fact the series is just great to sit and unwind with!

Again, thank you very much, hearing support from superheroes such as yourself and Steve gives me the inspiration to continue producing content like this. There's so many games out there that we can draw from that this series will be running for years to come! 

What I liked about the Walking Dead game series is the way situations and choices were setup. It's all gray area. There are no good choices. They are almost exclusively different shades of terrible choices. Part of the reason I loved the game. It's paced well and interactions are spaced in a good way. Also really like the render style of the characters.

I've been playing with a few workflows to hit the style with some custom characters. Haven't quite hit it. Getting closer:)

What I loved about the Walking Dead was the social way in which choices were displayed at the end. I created something similar using SL1, video, and Walking Dead-like multiple choice answers using hidden iframes to record each answer and it worked well for the most part. Too bad we couldn't finish filming, it would've been a cute demo to show.

It might also be worth having a look at Telltales' earlier feature, the Back to the Future series (x5 episodes). Not as polished as the Walking Dead, and it has more of an adventure point and click style compared to the hybrid nature of WD, but interesting storytelling is equally present. Ep.3 - Citizen Brown is my personal favorite.

Alex

Joshua, thanks for a thought provoking read, especially the PA posting and I'm now toying with the idea of using a game as an assessment tool to try and liven it up! I look forward to your future posts.

I agree with all of the comments above. 

Steve - The decisions in Walking Dead are incredibly well thought out, as you mention there is never an easy answer, you never truly know how the short term goals will be affected (or the long term goal of survival for that matter)

I've played the Back to the Future series too Alex - as you said, not as polished but non the less a great point and click adventure. The new releases from TTG, especially Game of Thrones have provided a fresh introduction into this style of storytelling in another era. Just as many difficult choices and another great effort by their team.

Thank you for the comments Chris and I look forward to preparing more posts for you to read, I should have another one up next week as I've got some time over the weekend to sit and start writing, I've already got some thoughts lined up.

Steve, I also love the look of those characters, keep me informed with how that goes and the potential success.

New post coming this week! Thanks for the continued support all!

I've just released my new post on Shovel Knight the 2014 8-bit award winning game!

This time I'm looking at organic learning, letting the learner practice in a safe environment and the power of chunking content.

Click the link below to read more!

It's all available right here!

Thanks for taking a look those that have!

Oh great another one, as if I haven't got enough work to do :-).  worst thing is I end up buying some of these games.

I have just downloaded Luminocity absolutely love it, simple puzzle to more extreme over time.  The intro is beautiful and I I planning to build a storyline course using this style so much that I can use.

More thought provoking stuff, thanks. These games are great examples for task based learning. I' m currently storyboarding an 8 bit platform game assessment and am toying with the idea of background music. Would a learner find this distracting or an engagement tool? Answers for and against more than welcome

Chris