Can games make a better world?

Jane McGonigal seems to think so. Check out this video!


Gaming can make a better world

"My goal for the next decade is to try to make it as easy to save the world in real life as it is to save the world in online games.” 

So after watching the video, some of you may be thinking, "But what about violence in video games? Isn't that a bad thing?" In my opinion, only if you don't monitor the games your kids are playing.

There are ratings on the backs of every game case for a reason. "M" games are meant for MATURE audiences, meaning 18+. If your child isn't 18+, and you buy him an M rated game, then I believe that you aren't allowed to blame the game for your child's violent behaviors.

"But what if I just give him some money and he goes out and buys whatever he wants?!"

Most places that I know of don't sell M rated games to minors. They specifically ask for an ID, and they won't sell you that game unless it states that you're over 18. And if you don't like the game, most places let you return it for full price within the first week of having it. If it's later than that, most places will buy it back from you, even if you didn't buy it there in the first place. Also, if you're worried about your child buying a game that he or she shouldn't be playing, you probably shouldn't let them just run off into a game store anyway...

Other than that, I don't see why gaming couldn't make a better world. It's already been suggested that gaming can improve your hand-eye coordination, and there are plenty of puzzle games out there that help your brain stay strong. There's even training simulation games, used by police officers, firemen, doctors, ect. Why not take it to the next level?

Game Design: An update

So I found a few new sites to add to the list here.

Gamasutra - A place to go to read up on what's going on in the industry.

Game Career Guide - A sub-category from Gamasutra. This is the perfect place to go on getting information on how to get into the industry.

Also, you may be wondering, "What about actually MAKING the games?" Well, luckily for you, I have two programs that you can download to help you with that:

Game Maker - You can download a free version of this program and make games similar to Mario with it. It's a bit of a lower-end, easy-to-use program, but you can make some pretty fun games with it! These would be browser games.

UDK - This is more of the 3D graphics engine, used for making better games for consoles and your computer. The type of games you would need to download to play.

Game Design: Where do I get started?

This is a question I've been asking myself since the start of this semester. Sure, the best place to start is to go to school. You have to know what you're doing before you can do it. But what about after, or even during your schooling? How do you get yourself out there and get noticed? Well, I asked my teacher the same question, and she gave me some good starting points:

99designs - A site where you can either commission a design, or you can answer to someone else's commission and actually GET PAID for it!

Women in Games International - A place for all of us women who are into game design.

Game Mentor Online - A place where you can go to get mentoring from people who are in the industry already, or who have had previous experience in the industry.

And, of course,

DeviantArt - A free place to post your artwork. DeviantArt has a large and active community who is willing to critique your art for you.

DeviantArt is also a great place to get links to other sites. There are groups that focus on anything and everything that you can join and share your artwork with, from simple sketches to photography to 3D character and level design. There's even a number of groups based on your love of Pokemon (because we know you love Pokemon. Don't deny it.) Thanks to a few of the groups I've joined on DeviantArt, I've managed to find these forums where you can post artwork as well:

Game Artisans

Polycount Forums

www.ConceptArt.org

All three of these sites have a section for your own online sketchbook as well, as well as job information, ranging from simple freelance work between forum peers to job openings in the industry, like Blizzard, for example.

The real tip at this stage is to just do some searching, and don't be scared to post something, even if you think it's terrible. Put yourself out there, and you're sure to get noticed. There are tons of people out there who are willing to help you reach your potential. And when you're asking for critiques, don't settle for a simple, "That's cool." or, "I can't do that!" answer. Ask them what they like and don't like about the image. Even if they're not artists, they can still offer you good advice.

While we're on the topic of getting ourselves noticed, you can go check out my DeviantArt page and send me commission requests!