So today we were asked to play Trafalgar Origins which is a free game available from the Channel 4 website.
The game involved steering a ship around trying to reach the checkpoints, avoiding the wind, attacking the enemy fleets and collecting the loots. At the start of the game there was an opportunity for a training session where it goes through the instructions step by step and slowly introduces us to the game and the rules. To be fair, this part of the game was really good, it was basic and easy to complete and I actually enjoyed it.
However, where most games gradually get harder and harder as the levels go on, this game throws you in the deep end, going from basic and easy levels to really hard and confusing levels. The instructions are not always clear and can be confusing. For example, one of the tasks was to capture the ship....There were about 7 identical ships and there was no clue as to which one you even had to capture. Eventually, i got fed up and ended up shooting all the ships which was how I completed the level! So what they really wanted was for me to sink all the ships and there was no capturing involved at all, which just baffled me.
As well as the confusing instructions and difficulty of the levels themselves, the controls were infuriating! The ship had a mind of its own and it was so difficult to control! This made the game even more infuriating and I gave up after a while, and just ended up sailing around randomly until it was time to finish. However, I am not a gamer. So if someone who plays games online regularly played this game, they may find it easier to control as they would get used to the controls.
In this seminar we also had to learn how to embed things into Blogger. As an example i am going to embed a video from Youtube. To embed a video from Youtube you find the Share button at the bottom of the video and click it. If you scroll to below the link an option for embed will have appeared, so click on that button. Then it will bring up some HTML content. You have to copy and paste that content into a new post on Blogger and there we have it!
We were asked to work in groups to create a Powerpoint Presentation. On this presentation we had to come up with a Dilemma and then have 3 choices with each of their scenarios.
Our Dilemma was a car accident.
Our 3 choices were either:
- Pretend it never happened and drive off
- Write your details down so they can contact your insurance
- Knock on the owners door but when there is no reply just forget about it
The first scenario results in a huge feeling of guilt but it is too late to come forward. In the second scenario, you admit fault and leave details even though your insurance will go up a considerable amount. The neighbours are glad you admitted to it and agree to settle the matter privately. In the third scenario, the driver tries to admit blame but when there is no answer they decide to just forget it happened which led to a bit of guilt, but at least they tried!
So what has The Dilemma got to do with gaming?
In this presentation, we created a scenario and gave 3 possibilities that the person could pick which all led to a different situation. This is just like in games. When a character comes across a situation in a game they are presented with different opportunities, and these opportunities all lead to a different outcome. For example, in GTA (Grand Theft Auto) if the player comes across another person in the street he has the opportunity to ignore them, or attack them and take their money. If they leave them alone they can carry on the game without any problems. If they rob them they can have extra money to buy more things and ultimately do better in the game. However, they may also get arrested which leads to a trip to the police station where you lose all your money and weapons which makes you even more worse off.
To be fair I understand why a lot of people get so addicted to games. I too, when starting a new game can get way too into the game and completely lose track of time. However, I don't see how people can spend all their time on them. I think people use games far too often. In particular, young children who should be outside exploring the world are stuck indoors constantly with their eyes stuck to the television playing games that they are probably to young to be playing!!
Obviously not all gamers are the same but there is a huge amount of people who regularly queue for hours in the cold just to get the latest games first, which i really see as a waste of time. It's up to the individual or the parents if they want to allow their children to play games constantly but I don't think that its very good parenting to allow children to stay in constantly. They should be socialising and making new friends (not including the friends they have on Xbox live). Children need to learn about the real world and playing Call Of Duty isn't going to do that.
However, there are some games that are actually educational and can help children to develop and learn.
So they're not all bad... :)
I missed the first lesson to Education Futures, but after talking to my classmates about the module im actually really excited to get started! Learning about different Technologies such as games and animations is actually going to be very useful as technology is used everywhere to do everything!
I'm not amazing when it comes to computer skills but i pick things up easily enough so this could really come in handy for me!
So i am very much looking forward to the rest of my lessons in Education Futures!
:D
