Well, this is timely. Kuma Reality Games is about to release a simulation game of John Kerry's missions in Vietnam, according to The New York Times.
With regard to the anti-Kerry accounts floating about: "We will present the controversy and different perspectives on it in the video news show that will accompany the mission," she added. "We will allow the user to play the game to determine for themselves what they think happened."
The company also has a model of Osama bin Laden ready to go with the expectation that many will want to replay his capture once it happens.
I wonder if they'll come out with a game depicting what George Bush was doing during his invisible National Guard service.
2 comments:
I am not really sure what the students will be learning in this game. The topic is a politically motivated one, and the truth is pretty obvious that John Kerry has an admirable military record in Vietnam. There are only minor questions on this issue. I think there are other historical controversies that would teach more to students. It seems like this company wants to capitalize upon this media frenzy. Maybe they could make the game into a "different perspectives" type game that could be applied to this situation. I think I would rather see that so that students can build skills that apply to controversy. By the way I am a Republican, and yes I believe that John Kerry has an admirable record in the military.
I wouldn't hold them too accountable for specific learning outcomes. Their own stated goal is to "entertain and inform", probably with a huge tilt toward the former. By itself, this doesn't purport to be educational. But in the hands of a skilled teacher like you, there could probably be a powerful lesson here in terms of skeptically analyzing the game in terms of the sources they used to create it. That could make critical thinking actually fun.
I took a look at the company's actual web site. Looks like they've got a pretty good engine for combining current events and first-person shooters. It's good business for them but unfortunate for us that our current events have so much in common with Duke Nukem.
Post a Comment