Communications of the ACM
USC Team Develops Research-Based Educational Games
The video game "Darfur is Dying" spreads awareness about the crisis in Darfur.
Credit: USC Cinematic Arts
Researchers at the University of Southern California's (USC) Game Innovation Lab are developing research-based games for education and social awareness. Referred to as "serious games" or "games for change," the games are designed to educate as well as entertain players.
One of the best-known games to come out of the lab is "Darfur Is Dying," a narrative-based simulation that puts players into the shoes of a refugee in a camp in the Sudan so they can better understand the crisis in the region, says Game Innovation Lab director Tracy Fullerton. Some of the lab's games are designed specifically for classrooms, to teach, for example, 12th grade constitutional history.
USC launched the lab in 2004, and its mission is "to pursue experimental design of games in cultural realms including art, science, politics, and learning," according to the lab's website. Research is a key component of the game development process, which involves establishing goals, determining how to best meet them, and then assessing outcomes to ensure the games achieve those goals.
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