Educational Games?

For this entry, I'm going to hit on the topic of "educational" games. I don't just mean those math and vocabulary games! (Although, let's admit, we all wanted to find Carmen Sandiego.) When I was child, I had a house rule that I had to show that a game was educational in order to play it. I was well acquainted with those math games... but I became creative. For anyone on the lookout for games to challenge the mind, here are some that I came up with as a kid, and you can probably find similar today.

(Keep in mind that I'm a child of the 90s, so most games I discuss in this entry are outdated.)

Oregon Trail (elementary school)

Honestly, many of you might scoff. After all, in this game you just need to get to the West Coast and you don't really deviate from the path that often. However, for young children, this can be an interesting history lesson and help children to plan ahead. I remember reading about all the landmarks in the game, and after playing a few times, you start to learn about the choices you should make at the beginning. Do I want to be an adventurer? How much salt should I buy? Those small choices gave me an impression of how disease was prevented, how to preserve food, etc.

The "fun" part? I liked going hunting, because target games were popular then. (Talk about shooting games at their most basic form.)

Don't have the 90s edition but want to play? You can get this game for your smartphone, but from what I've heard and seen, the old 90s version is still the best! (The iPhone version is very cartoony and if you download the full game, it takes up quite a bit of space.)

Age of Empires II (junior high school)

More history! I haven't tried AOE III, which is available on Steam, because I heard down the grapevine that it wasn't as good as AOE II. Additionally, I replaced it over the years with Starcraft 2 (but that will be discussed in a different section).

When I first got this game in middle school, I had to play the campaign for the history section. As long as you don't use cheat codes, it remained pretty true to history and lore. I learned about Joan of Arc, the Aztecs, etc. As for the gameplay itself, it challenges kids to use strategy and tactics. While other games have bypassed the complexity of Age of Empires, one thing that I enjoyed about the game was choosing the formation of the units. This adds another layer of strategy into the game that made it fun, yet easy enough for children to play.

Sims games (high school)

This was a stretch for the educational part, and in the end a compromise with my parents since I was in high school. I made the argument that it teaches budgeting and multitasking. Once again, a feasible argument if no cheat codes are used. I do know some people who have difficulty with the game, and I think the struggling of the beginning of the game when you have no Simoleons (aka Sim Cash) is the fun part.

Funnily enough, in the Sims 2 University expansion pack -- I found it was really time consuming to have an awesome relationship and straight As! My Sim complained at me all the time because she needed sleep. I laughed at that realization in the game, because I'm sure this is real life for a lot of people, and certainly was my own.

Additionally, I know a lot of people who like to use this game simply for the building/design aspects of the game. Sims 3 especially stepped up the choices you can make in landscaping and house design -- a nice game for future architects.

Starcraft series

This was NOT a game I tried to convince my parents to let me play when I was younger, because I honestly saw my guy friends obsess over it and I was too involved with extracurriculars, grades, and my Sims (haha) to want to play. Honestly though, I was all about Age of Empires, and had no idea of the similarities in gameplay.

I was forced by my now-boyfriend to try it when we first started hanging out, and I played Starcraft 2: Wings of Liberty. Loved it! This is probably a game that the two of us will both review soon since the next expansion is coming out and we're trying the beta. However, if you're skeptical over the educational aspects of this game, I'm just going to flash you this Scientific American article I came across in college:

Scientific American: How a computer game is reinventing the science of expertise

This article mentioned how chess playing used to be THE game to study for cognitive science. However, the author says how Starcraft 2 may overtake that throne. Personally, I think I would have enjoyed this alternative to chess as a child. There definitely is a learning curve in the game, and it was like AOE on steroids for me. It was challenging, it made me think, it made me adapt. What more could you want in a game for educational purposes?

Minecraft 

This is a good team-oriented game, and it can be incredibly fun for creative people. The items made can be deduced if you think about it long enough on your own, and pretty much anything you want to build can be built. You could even build a working clock or a computer in this game. Honestly, I've taken several circuits classes and I have to use some of that knowledge to try to figure out some of my friends' more complicated layouts.

This game is what you make of it, honestly. However, my boyfriend came across this website that suggests that this game can be used in the classroom:

Hopefully, people will forgive that I didn't go into detail in each game. I just wanted to give a few choices that could substitute the very transparent learning games (i.e. Solve this equation before you can open the door!!!). I'm not saying those games are obsolete. They are very good learning tools, but if you want to a fun game that's also education, these were my own picks growing up.

Faster Than Light

Introduction

Your initial impression of the game may lead you to think its archaic and simplistic. The older style graphics, simple backdrops, and midi like soundtrack all contribute to these sentiments. However, the simplistic nature of the game is quite deceiving as the game can be brutally difficult and requires a lot of strategy. Instead of detracting from the game, the difficulty and unforgiving nature of the game challenges the player and entices them to try, just one more time, over and over again.

Game Play

Faster Than Light has you control a Federation space ship as you run away from the rebel fleet with vital information for the Federation (reverse Star Wars anyone?)  During your travels, you have to manage power systems and upgrades to your spacecraft. Within each game, you go through eight sectors. The only sectors that remain constant are the initial sector (which is a Civilian Sector) and the last sector (which is always The Last Stand sector). The six sectors in between are randomly available from a pool of possible sectors. Each sector has a theme as to the type of enemy you will fight and certain random events only happen in certain sectors.

One may then think they can simply look up the “optimal” way to upgrade/manage their ship and the game would be easy. The developers managed to avoid this pitfall with the inclusion of random events. In one play-through, you may find a stranded individual on a planet that will join your crew if you invite them on your ship. In another, that stranded individual will go crazy and kill one of your crew members. Or in another case, you could find a lot of random weapons floating in space, in another, you can only seem to find pirates and hostile enemies. The randomization forces the player to change their strategy based off what's available, which only adds to the replay-ability. I will note, that sometimes, the randomization can get frustrating because one is unable to find anything useful. This may lead some players to despair, as there is seemingly no way to improve your chances of success (because if you die, you have to start over). This sentiment can be overcome with the inclusion of unlock-able ships and achievements. The ships can be unlocked through random events and selecting the correct choice, or reward for accomplishing certain achievements. Each ship also has 3 ship specific achievements that will unlock an alternate version of that ship.

Sound

The sound reminds of classic midi music from the SNES era. It’s not over the top, nor tries to draw attention to itself. I have always loved midi music and video game soundtracks in general. So I quickly found myself whistling tracks from the game. However, if one really doesn't like the music, they can just disable it and play their own music.   

Overall

If you want to get lost in a game that will challenge your wits and adaptability, look no further. For its price of 10 dollars, the amount of utility you can get per dollar is very high. The drive to try and unlock all the ships and get the alternative versions of the ships kept me playing long after I had beaten the game.

Our headset choices (what we have, and why)

The two of us have different tastes in headsets, and of course we have different budgets. However, both of us updated our headsets this past year, and these were our final choices. 

His choice: Logitech Wireless Gaming Headset G930 with 7.1 Surround Sound

This was purchased from Amazon.com for about $65 around Black Friday 2012. These are tagged at $160, and the price usually fluctuates between $80-$120 usually when discounted. This is the wireless version of the popular G35, and since my boyfriend likes to talk to people on Skype and get things done, I decided to cash in for the wireless version for his Christmas gift. I honestly don’t like being tethered to my computer desk, and long wires often become a nuisance.

I also thought that this would mean he wouldn’t be able to use the excuse that he didn’t want to leave the call to go make food anymore. (A girl can dream, right?)

The sound quality (with the 7.1 toggled on) is very crisp and clear, and the bases come through very well without being “boomy”. I tested the sound using some calming guitar music and well as some more popular songs, and both gave me the impression that I was in the room with the artist. The sound reminded me of my experience with the Bose earbuds or Logitech Ultimate Ears line, but since I’m not an audiophile, I suggest looking at other reviews for more technical information.

If you want this headset, I suggest waiting for the sale to hit if you’re on a budget. The current listed price of $85 is pretty good for this headset, but you can get it for $50-$70 occasionally.

Her choice: Razer Carcharias Gaming Headset

This was purchased from Amazon.com for about $50. These are tagged at $79.99. Why the Carcharias (which I will admit is a name I can’t pronounce)? My previous headset was the Logitech Stereo H230, which is one of the cheaper headsets Logitech offers. The H230 wasn’t a BAD headset, but after being on the computer for a couple of hours, I found that the H230 hurt my ears since it pinched the side of my head. I wanted comfort, and wanted to spring for better sound quality as well. However, something like the G35s or the G930s is too much for my wallet to handle. That kind of style is also a bit bulky for my taste.

I extensively read reviews online before purchasing these, but it was a series of reviews comparing headsets by Tom's Hardware that convinced me in the end. That 2009 review lists 5 different headsets, while taking into account the following criteria: design, comfort, convenience, sound quality, and console compatibility. Even if you don't want these Razer ones, I think that review is a good place to get an idea of what's out there. Obviously, it's a little outdated, but for a newb like me, it's better than nothing.

Almost every review I stumbled upon that didn’t hate Razer agreed that the Carcharias were the most comfortable set you could find. The padding is made of a velvety material, and is very comfortable to wear. I read some reviews of the headset slipping off the head during use, but I haven’t run into that problem yet. The microphone does pick up some background noise, but my friends agree that it is a great improvement over the H230s. An expected result, but still a relief. My computer is near an antique radiator that hisses and pops a lot, and anyone I talked to complained all the time about the sound previously. Now with the Carcharias, the sound is practically gone.

If you’re interested in this headset, but this is still out of your price range, I suggest checking Woot.com from time to time. They periodically have Razer sales for refurbished items, and I’ve seen this headset on their site before. I was going to buy a refurbished Carcharias from Woot for $35 + $5 shipping, but it sold out pretty quickly. (I know there are negative reviews out there, but I am a great fan of Woot.com, and the customer service has been fantastic every time I’ve dealt with them. Additionally, all the electronics I've bought from that site were up to par.)