It's a serious game
In response to Lord Puttman's call for computer games “to contribute to national culture” PlayGen Ltd, who work to create a range of "Serious Games" aimed at educating youngsters, has released 'The Serious Policy Game ', where players are on a mission to win Treasury funding for a new policy.In a bizarre attempt to appeal to youngsters, The Serious Policy Game includes a virtual representation of American socialite Paris Hilton and a Master Of Ceremonies who bears an uncanny resemblance to Keira Knightly.
We'd suggest that if 'Serious Games' want to be taken seriously, they drop the gimmicks.
Nevertheless, the political game is free to download and its main purpose is to 'demonstrate how political processes and decision making can be brought to life in a fun and interesting way through a virtual world'.
“We’re showing how you can engage audiences with new ideas through a medium they’re comfortable with – computer games,” says PlayGen’s MD and head developer Kam Memarzia. “Young people are disengaged from politics,” says Memarzia. “We can develop games that involve them in policy development or feed into actual public consultation.”
You can download The Serious Pollicy at the official site.
