An idea for a fun accounting game

Breaking the Grip of Dominant Ideas In Games:
What Serious Game Projects Have To Offer Entertainment Game Developers
- Tim Carter

" ... A few years ago I met a potential client – an institute for chartered accountants – who needed to attract high school students to their field. (I’m about to reveal what I think is a cool new idea…) I pitched to them what I saw could be a really fun and educational 3D game about accounting. (A fun game about accounting?… I see you looking doubtfully at this.) The thing about accounting is it really is financial reconnaissance (that’s why it’s called “accounting”). It’s not just about “bean-counting”; it’s about gathering financial “intel” – and “recon” can be an exciting thing: think about a scout behind enemy lines, or a forensic crime-scene unit doing detective work. ..."

U.S. Army Employs New Video Game Language Training

U.S. Army Employs New Video Game Language Training

Gamasutra: A new video game training tool developed by the University of Southern California’s Information Sciences Institute has begun to be used by the US Army and Marine Corps to teach soldiers about Middle Eastern customs and language.

Corporation for Public Gaming

Serious Games Source

Why We Need a Corporation for Public Gaming
- David Rejeski

Serious Games Source: "However, serious games, like serious TV, are likely to remain a sidebar in the history of mass media. Non-commercial television floundered, despite millions of dollars of investment by the Ford Foundation, until the government stepped in and created a viable and long-lasting alternative. With similar vision and foresight, and a relatively small amount of funding, this could happen with video and computer games."

Australian Defence Force 'serious game' ADF: Aviator - Statistics

Australian Defence Force 'serious game' ADF: Aviator

The creators of the Australian Defence Force 'serious game' ADF: Aviator have announced that the title, which requires full name and address registration before its free digital delivery, has been downloaded more than 7,000 times since its launch in October. This move comes as other countries move to use America's Army style recruiting tactics for their own nations.

The game, which was developed by Visual Jazz in conjunction with active and veteran armed forces aviators as part of the Australian Defence Force's attempt to appeal to young recruits, features realistic missions that give players a glimpse at what it takes to be a pilot in the army, navy or air force by simulating real missions across various types of terrain.

The Defence Force Recruitment (DFR) has revealed that 69 percent of the game's downloads have come from players between the ages of 13 and 25, with most of these falling between 13 and 19. Of these, 91.6 percent were male, while the remaining 8.4 percent were female.

"As long-time avid adopters of gaming for serious purposes, the military are well aware of the potential of serious games. The military invest heavily in the design, development and implementation of the serious games primarily for training and recruitment purposes," indicated Andrew Stapleton, a game researcher at Swinburne University of Technology, in a recent paper.

DFR also indicated that a new version of ADF: Aviator is in the works currently, and will feature joystick support, keyboard remapping and rotor wash effects. It added that subsequent versions will include more varied aircraft and missions, as well as more detailed environments.

04/07/06 - Jason Dobson

Games for Health Day @ USC during E3 Week

Games for Health Day @ USC during E3 Week

"The Games for Health Project, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, TATRC, and USC’s Annenberg School for Communication & Institute for Creative Technologies invite you to join us on May 9 for a full-day event devoted to the use of games and game technologies in health and healthcare, including an evening reception.

This one-day event, just before the opening of the Electronic Entertainment Expo will bring together researchers, game developers, and health & healthcare professionals for a series of talks devoted to how games and game technologies are addressing critical health & healthcare issues."

Civ IV Tournament at Brandeis University Internation Business School

Civ IV Tournament at Brandeis University Internation Business School

The dedication of the Asper Center for Global Entrepreneurship at the third annual Asper Forum for Global Entrepreneurship honored Firaxis Games, Creators of "Civilization."