Creative Writing Game on Shakespeare

I’m putting myself in the funny position of writing a review of a game that does not yet exist. Yet, this Kickstarter website promises that it soon will: funding targets have been met and it is currently in production and set for limited release in 2012. It’s based on this design document, which was downloaded from here.

The Play’s the Thing is a storytelling board game based on Shakespeare’s plays. Players are actors rehearsing various scenes from Shakespeare, and must try to alter the original in order to “improve” it. Hamlet could be recreated with Ophelia as the main character for example, or The Tempest might take place on the island of the Lost TV show.

I find the concept of the game excellent and an intriguing addition to a book club or a high school English Class. But how it would actually work is a little baffling to me. The design document doesn’t describe the win state clearly, but the game plays off of the struggle of wills between actors and directors in the theater world. If I understand it correctly, the players representing actors are struggling to impose their visions on changes that should be made to the play’s plot, characters, or setting. They do this somehow by earning and then spending points. Dice are also involved. I wish the video provided on the Kickstarter site had focused more on gameplay.

This is how I see the ARCS model working here:

Attention:
If you are a fan of Shakespeare, you are told that you have an opportunity to play around with his work. If you don’t like Shakespeare, you are given the opportunity to take his work and make it better.

Relevance:
This would be high if used in an appropriate setting. In a high school English class, it could be an opportunity to discuss how certain elements of the plays “work” and offer students the chance to probe for deeper understanding. How would Hamlet’s internal conflict change for example, if Claudius were not his uncle? Or if Claudius had not married his mother? Would Hamlet then be much more likely to seek revenge sooner?
In a creative writing situation the game could serve as a useful springboard as well.

Confidence:
To those players who may not be comfortable sharing their creative ideas and exposing them to criticism, the fact that each player is representing an actor with an agenda neatly subverts that. Here is a sample actor role description:

The Ingenue: Virginal and naive, you have the unforced heart of a child. Others wish to
shield you from the world, but know that your innocence is fleeting.

Onstage - The Ingenue knows how to win hearts. You may spend a story point
to reroll a failed Pathos roll.

Offstage - The Ingenue can inspire greatness. You may spend a story point to
allow another character to reroll a failed Logos roll.

Direction - At the Playwright's request, The Ingenue must place herself in
danger.

Therefore, the player is working to make story edits that fit the “actors” role, and may be less self conscious about being judged on the quality of his/her ideas.

Satisfaction:
The opportunity to come up with your own storytelling vision, and then being able to convince others to accept it would create satisfaction I think. In addition, starting with already established plays and then tweaking them could make the creative storytelling process easier for players who struggle with creative writing.

UPDATE: There is an older vintage game of the same name which is also based on Shakespeare. But this one is a different game.

Future Possiblities with User-generated Content

I recently discovered a gaming platform that I think will grow in popularity in coming years. The game is from Microsoft and made for X-box. It can be played on a computer or in an X-box gaming console. Kodu lets instructional designers create video game quality story telling adventure style games. It can be used for logic and problem solving activities and is beginning to be used in some Australian schools. The video below demonstrates how it is used for learning.

The reason this game caught my attention is that it reminds me of the game LittleBig Planet that Sony demonstrated at the recent ASTD conference. Both games allow instructional designers to develop user-generated content using popular gaming platform such as X-box and Playstation. Sony demonstrated some of the innovations in eGaming that they were developing, and the experience seemed very interactive and uses a platform that younger audiences are familiar with. Kodu is the X-box equivalent of Sony’s Playstation game.

I don’t see this game taking off and revolutionizing the eGaming world anytime soon. The technology has tremendous potential, but there is not a well-established pedagogy for how to design and make it a useful learning tool. In time as more people learn how to use a tool like this, I can see tremendous potential. Games platforms such as this may be the future direction that eGaming may evolve.

This gaming platform has great potential for incorporating motivational elements. The richness and depth of the graphics are visually stimulating and can work well at capturing Attention. The ability to create narrative story’s that relate to the learner, offers tremendous potential for creating Relevant games that target learner interests. Children can create their own games that incorporate learning in a meaningful way. The game also allows for mastery of sequences that teach cause and effect to build Confidence. Finally, the game can create Satisfaction by allowing players to cooperate and build gaming communities. Children can even create their own individualized games.

For more information about how the game is used in classrooms, see the report here.

Kongregate Multitasking Game - How Well Do You Multitask?

For several years I have felt inadequate because I am a horrible multitasker. It seems that any job description contains a line about the ability to multitask. While I am usually able to perform a single task very well, whenever I try to juggle multiple tasks I do a rather poor job on all of them. I am thrilled that the recent studies on multitasking have assured me that I am not a freak of nature and I’m not any less capable than my "multitasker" buddies and coworkers.

I recently discovered a free online game from Kongregate that tests one’s ability to multitask. I decided to try it. Well on two tries, I did not make it past the first level. I finally did on my third try because I knew what to expect, but I couldn't get any further. This is a site that I think would be fun to share with all self-proclaimed multitaskers. Check it out and see how well you do. If you do better than the second level, you can exercise your bragging rights.

Goodwill Community Foundation: Free Online Learning Resources

Like a lot of people, I am familiar with the Goodwill Community Foundation (GCF) because I use its thrift shops to get rid of stuff I don’t want anymore and get a tax deduction in the process. I love looking through the store to see I can find a treasure. What I didn’t know until a few months ago is that GCF offers training on a variety of subjects on its Web site, and occasionally through the On Demand offerings on Time Warner Cable.

I discovered this educational resource when surfing through the On Demand channel offerings. Just out of curiosity, I decided to check out some of the offerings. One lesson I remember was on the basics of fractions. The lesson was presented in a very tastefully designed, well-narrated Flash file that I could tell was created with Articulate Presenter because of the look and feel of the screen. The content was very basic, but was well suited to an elementary school child or to anyone for that matter who needs a refresher on adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing fractions. The training was quite short too. It provided just a good bite size amount of content.

About two weeks later, I looked for those courses on cable again and they had been removed. What I did discover is that everyone can access GCF’s free training on the GCF Learn Free.org Web site. Did I say it was free? Let me state that again: The training is FREE. There are a plethora of topics to explore. You learn at your own pace with over 750 lessons and over 250 videos. You can take computer-related classes, classes pertaining to money management, other classes pertaining to everyday life, and so on. It is definitely worth checking out.