Exploration of the Serious Games Taxonomy

Science and research in education is most often a combined effort of corporations or governments and the schools getting paid for putting their staff and students on specific topics. In the perspective of serious-games, the results in games or interactive applications often demonstrating, and essentially stimulating, the potential new development of these topics. In corporations, these games, usually branded with the brand of the corporations involved, generate instant advertisement for the students involved. The students in question are sometimes already familiar and trained to the needs of the corporations and are therefor perfect for future employment.

The games or interactive applications generated by this process are often aimed for new investers. The funds generated out of this can then be used by the corporations to further develop the topics.

The blob
This is a game created by eight students of Game Design and Development at the Utrecht School of the Arts. Which was commissioned by the information centre for Utrecht’s railway station area. A specific part of the city of Utrecht was in development and rennovated and to assosiate this new area with possitive energy this game was created. It’s a platforming game for the wii demonstrating the new area of Utrecht showing a blob painting the area with bright colors. The game was so fun it was later bought by THQ and commercially released. The actual message of the game was soon forgotten, but the concept remained in the game still forfilling it’s purpose.

http://www.youtube.com/v/87xjS6lLr5w

Virtual NS stations

This was a virtual simulation of several trainstations in the netherlands rebuild in Secondlife. The purpose was to test and demonstrate the positions and functionality of the OV-chipcard and the assosiated poles on the trainstations. This project was co-created by me during an internship at DNB-media for my school. This project was commisioned by the NS.

Links to field related websites:
Hoge school voor Kunsten Utrecht a school for future game developers:
http://www.hku.nl/web/Studiekeuze/GamesEnInteractie/GameDesignAndDevelopment.htm

International Game Architecture and Design another school for future game developers:
http://igad.nhtv.nl/made/?page=research