Library Voice

Paul Waelchli, author of Research Quest, and I, have agreed to do a weekly Vs. series discussing the educational value of various video games. Paul and I have frequent exchanges over IM about information literacy, gaming, parenting, and more. I consider Paul a friend, and this Vs. mode is less of a competition but more of a way to challenge each other to explore new ideas about gaming. Perhaps somewhere along the way our readers might join in on the conversation as well.

Paul has gotten this week’s Vs. conversation going with a timely post Grand Theft Auto IV. If you happened to be at Wal-mart yesterday, or you’ve been watching the news, you’re likely aware that one of the most-hyped video games of all time was just released. GTA has traditionally been very controversial, as many in the press criticize the themes and the violent gameplay. It’s likely that news outlets will look for ways to take advantage of the game’s hype and add fuel to the controversy. They’ll say things like “games are destroying our kids” or that “games train kids to be killers.” They’ll pull in experts that attest to these claims, while ignoring other studies that tell the opposite. Regardless of which side of the fence you’re on, please take everything you hear with a grain of salt. As GTA is rated M for Mature, our kids shouldn’t be playing this anyway.

But I digress. The original question was whether a game like GTA is a good teacher, or does it simply offer a classroom (or laboratory) for players to experiment with. GTA is a long running series that goes back quite some time. GTA is not like your typical video game. Most video games lead the player along a linear path from point A to point Z. With most games, you’re given a mission or a directive to complete in order to progress to the next level. As the player progresses to the next level, he is presented with a little more of the game’s story, thereby being rewarded for finishing the level. GTA is a sandbox style game, in which the player can choose to play the various missions to move the story along, or he can explore the game and do other activities. There are various side missions in the GTA games that do not move the plot along, but still allow the player to complete various objectives. It is this sandbox style gameplay that makes the GTA a great example of learning by trial and error rather than learning by example.

Generally in the beginning of a GTA game, the player is presented with a series of tutorials. The player will learn how to use the map, navigate the heads-up-display (HUD), practice using the controller buttons in context, and learn how to interact with various aspects of the environment. This usually occurs in the first few minutes of the game, then after which the player is left to explore. When I first started playing GTA Liberty City Stories, I immediately went to the first and second missions and completed them. After completing each mission, another piece of the plot is revealed and another mission is unlocked. I personally a big fan of stories in video games, so I always appreciate moving the plot along when I get a chance. After completing a whopping 2% of the game, I got bogged down on a few missions. These missions don’t really tell you how to complete them, but only give you the objectives. In one mission, I had to acquire a four door car and go rescue some of my thug friends who were caught in a shootout with police. So I jacked a car and drove over to the shootout. Directions to the shootout location were on my map, so I had no problem finding int. However, upon rescuing my thug buddies, I now had to evade the police. Guess what? There wasn’t an indicator on my map telling me where I had to go to evade the police. After driving around for about 20 minutes, I got caught by the police. I repeated the mission, and then got caught again. And again. And again. Finally I figured there must be a way for me to hide my car, and I then remembered how to go get my car painted at the car detailer. I had actually learned how painting a car tricks the police in a previous mission, but I had forgotten about that while trying the evade the fuzz. When I finally figured out thats what I was supposed to do, I tried it. But unfortunately I forgot how to get to the car detailer place, so I got caught again. So I gave up. Sad, I know.

Instead of retrying that mission over and over again, I went for a drive. I stole me a car and took a trip. Then I got tired of the car so I stole me a motor cycle. Then I got tired of driving, so I just walked around a bit. In the process of all that walking and driving around, I found hidden objects, hidden weapons, and more. I found that I got beat up if I went to a certain part of town. I got to see more of the environment of the video game and interact with it. I found that the people on the street treat you differently when you’re wearing different clothes. I learned that a motorcycle jumps farther than a garbage truck, but you get more points when you wreck the garbage truck. I learned that when you take a stolen car to the car crusher, you get more money for a sports car than you do for a minivan.   I learned that if you try to steal a black four-door sedan you’re likely to get shot.  All the while I was exploring, I became more familiar with the rules of the game and the layout of the city. I haven’t tried to rescue my thug buddies again, but I now know that I need to take two left turns and a right to get to the car detailer.

In learning all of this, the game did not hold my hand. It did not tell me that I could jump a garbage truck off a cliff. However, when I did it, I got some wicked skill points. I learned this and more through exploration in an open lab environment.  So yes, while the game does teach you the basic skills in the first few minutes, the rest of the game is up to the player.  The player learns by exploring, by experimenting, and by failing.  The reward for succeeding a mission is the unlocking of a new one, perhaps even harder than the first.  Even when frustration sets in, the player can choose other available missions, or continue to explore and probe the environment to learn more about the game.  While exploring on his own, the player may acquire new skills, knowledge, or items that may help him in completing the mission that he’s stuck on.

So Paul, my final answer is this:  GTA is not a teacher, but a laboratory for experimenting and exploration.  Learning occurs while the player mixes the right ingredients, probes the environment, and experiments with trial-and-error.  GTA does not tell you what you did wrong if you fail but only encourages you to try again.  Once you do solve a problem, you are rewarded with another unlocked mission, money, status points, or more.  Failing is painful at times, but trying and succeeding is truly an incentive to keep playing and learning.

Like many gamers who are also husbands, fathers, librarians, cyclists, guitar players, I have trouble finding time for games, much less finishing them.  Sometimes it’s hard to face the fact that you’re not a kid anymore, and life is not just about playing whenever you want to.  However, Paul Govan offers comfort by encouraging us to play less and enjoy more :

• Looking back on the last few years, I realise the brutal truth of the transition from young gamer to family man is that I no longer finish many games. Some are simply too long to warrant the time with so much else to do, whilst others just don’t manage to grab my imagination. This might sound like I am leaving my old hobby behind. But don’t take this slide into gaming lowlands as a lack of care or devotion to these masterpieces of digital agency. Quite the reverse, I’m still as inspired and committed to games as ever. It’s just the reality of life that means I now play in the gaps around the main event of friends and family.

With this new console generation picking up steam, more and more cool games are being released.  It’s really quite easy to get caught up in the fever of the next big release.  However, I’m still playing my “ancient” Playstation 2, and I have quite a few games to play before I can justify a PS3.  The PS2 has a ton of games, many of which I can get for under 20 bucks.  My PSP is also getting a lot of play time as well, as more greatest hits and used titles are available for the gamer on a budget.  If you shop around and are patient, it’s likely you won’t often have to spend more than 20 bucks on a new game on either system.  This, of course, requires you to play the games that all the cool kids have already played.  However, when you’re no longer a kid, it’s impossible to keep up with the cool kids.  So that’s why I’m playing games from 2005.  However, because I’m picking my way through last-gen’s games, it allows me to be more selective about what I really want to play.  As Paul sums this up nicely:

So as the torrent of new games continues, I can more easily pick my way through to those that connect with me. I realise I am learning to play the games I like, rather than those I am told are groundbreaking. The bottom line here is that I am enjoying playing now more than ever. I’m probably more evangelical about these experiences than ever before, and because they genuinely move me rather than for their technical prowess. The games I play now capture my imagination and create meaningful experiences, I hope that yours do too.

This guy wrote this about video games:

I hate video games, on or offline. I hate the way they suck real people into fake worlds and hold on to them for decades at a time. I hate being made to feel hateful for saying so, and I hate being told to immerse myself in them before passing judgment, because it feels like being told to immerse myself in smack and teenage pregnancy before passing judgment on them.

This is not because of anything wrong or bad about video games or heroin or teenage parents. It’s not even because of game-induced homicide or web-grooming of little girls by perverts - serious problems, but statistically low-risk. It’s because, compared with everything else on offer in a kid’s life, video games and heroin and teenage pregnancy are a colossal waste of time.

Turns out he’s also written a book, which happens to be on Amazon. Which of course, is now getting glowing reviews like this:

Now that’s web 2.0 in action. Beautiful.

Chris Kohler, from Wired, confesses to have never played a Grand Theft Auto video game. I’m in the same boat, although I did have a brief stint with GTA: San Andreas, and am currently working on GTA: Liberty Series Stories on my PSP. In preparation for the arrival of GTA IV at the end of April, he’s working his way through some of the GTA series. In this post, he writes about his experiences with 2001’s GTA III. While he talk mostly about the gameplay mechanics and story, one thing of note is that he discusses how the game makes him learn. I’ve quoted an excerpt from his post below:

in this mission, you have to drive to a parking lot, grab somebody’s car, take it to a chop shop where a car bomb is put in it, drive it back to the lot, arm the bomb and run.

Sounds easy enough when it’s described to you. But there are several reasons why it isn’t, and each one of these problems (that a player is likely to run into) teaches you something critical about the gameplay.

• The cops might pick you up. The parking lot isn’t far from the garage where you get the mission, but situated right between them is the Liberty City police station. Since the mission is timed, and the fastest way to the parking lot is right through a little grassy area that nice people do not drive on, you’re likely to just go straight over it. Then blow a red light. Then maybe wing somebody. All perfectly OK, unless you’re in full view of the cops. More than once, my Wanted level shot up to two stars just by driving by here like a jackass. Lesson learned: Drive carefully.

• You can ruin the car pretty easily. If Mike Lips walks out of the Italian restaurant to find his car’s windshield busted and the hood missing, what’s he going to think? He’s certainly not going to jump in and start the engine, triggering his demise. So if you have any collisions on the way to the chop shop, you’ll need to take the car to the repair shop and get it fixed up. This kills two birds with one stone: It teaches you how to drive a car and not ruin it, first of all, and it also reminds you where the repair shop is, because knowing how to use it is an important part of the game otherwise — if you get your car repaired, the cops can’t find you anymore.

• You have to park the car perfectly. On my second try, I got the car back with time to spare, but pulled it in the wrong way. The game told me I had to park correctly, so I tried to, but the car I’d originally arrived in was blocking the way and I couldn’t get it right. Then, while trying to adjust the car’s position, I slammed it into the wall and now it was busted up. Mission failed. What did this teach me? The next time I did this mission, I parked the first car way outside the lot, thus leaving myself a clean path to pull the bomb-car in next time.

Once you successfully make it out of this mission, you’ll have learned a great deal about the rules of the game. As such, accomplishing all of this was a great feeling.

Yes, while the Grand Theft Auto series is controversial and a bit violent, this excerpt is a prime example the learning process in video games.

As video games become more and more complex, it can become even more difficult to finish games. Also, with so many great titles available to play, it’s very easily to get distracted and buy other games before finishing the one you’re playing. 1UP.com asks Why Don’t People Finish Games Any More and Kotaku asks if gamers finish every game they buy.

The 1Up article addresses several reasons for why people don’t finish games:

• Time: The same gamers who grew up during the Nintendo era no longer has extensive amounts of free time to play games. In other words, “the rent has to be paid and the baby has to be changed.”
• Money: Those same gamers can afford to buy more games, so they’re likely to buy additional games before they finish the ones they’re playing.
• Game disappointment: There can be a variety of factors that cause a player to quit playing a game. The game may suddenly get ridiculously difficult and the player may get frustrated. The player may no longer be drawn to the story. The story may not be progressing as quickly as necessary to keep the gamer interested. Finally, the gameplay may just get plain redundant and boring.
• A not-so-grand finale: According to 1Up, “It’s a grimly accepted fact that videogame endings usually suck.” Gamers are likely to feel cheated if they beat the final boss and the ending is lackluster.
• Leveling up can be a grind: In other words, in order to strengthen your character enough to be able to beat the next boss, you often have to spend hours grinding your way through levels acquiring skills and points. This can be particularly tedious and very time consuming.

The Kotaku article is more of a question, and has been answered by nearly 700 commenters. Here’s a few thoughts from the contributors:

I just got a PlayStation Portable right after Christmas.  I’m looking to right a full review of my experiences pretty soon, but let me just say that I love the handheld.  The PSP is great little console, and the number of quality games is starting to pick up.   To help you decide on the best games for the system, GamePro has a list of the 21 Best Games for the PSP.

From Opposable Thumbs, a discussion of this MSNBC article on parents and gaming:

I have a six year-old and a four year-old in the house, and we don’t let them play video games yet. When I was growing up, I didn’t get involved in video games until I was older, and was already a voracious reader and outside-goer. I’d like to let my kids get the same chances to explore the real world before introducing them to the virtual one. But I’m looking forward to playing games with them in the future, and hopefully being the cool gaming dad.

GamerDad also offers his thoughts on the importance of gaming with children:

Let me answer the question for you. The answer is “worthwhile.” Or at least as worthwhile as watching football, playing catch, reading poetry out loud together (hey, some family probably still does this) and playing board games or just being social.

My two boys, 3 1/2 and 1 1/2, are not yet old enough to play and fully understand games.  However, the time is coming.  Right now I hand them both a controller sans batteries so they can play along.  On occasion, I give them a real controller and let them ride around as Tony Hawk in Pro Skater 4.  I look forward to the day when we can conquer the galaxy together with a game like Lego Star Wars 2 or take turns at a level boss in Ratchet & Clank. 

Newsweek has an interview with Brian Allgeier, the creative director of Ratchet & Clank Future:  Tools of Destruction.  Allgeier gives five traits that make for really good video games.  According to Allgeier, good games:

1. Begin with a bang
2. Have a compelling main character
3. Have a good pace of the progression
4. Contain a Strategic Meta Game
5. Fulfill a fantasy.

This is a a great read that illustrates what makes video games so engaging for players. 

I’ve been reading a lot lately about portable gaming, and I’ve become really interested in getting a PlayStation Portable (PSP).  While the PSP has not sold as well as the Nintendo DS, the PSP has more games that I’m interested in playing.  I’m really interested in Metal Gear Solid Portable Ops, Syphon Filter:Dark Mirror and Logan’s Shadow, and Medal of Honor Heroes.  Each of these games has an in-depth singleplayer experience while also having a robust online multiplayer experience.  With two kids, the pick up and play (and put down easily) gameplay of a portable system does seem very appealing. In looking at the PSP, like a good librarian, I did a little bit of research.  Here is what I’ve found useful.

Next Generation has an article called The PSP Comeback?, which details the future of the PSP.  According to the article, the future is bright.

IGN has an article about the Future of the PlayStation Portable, where game developers comment on what they have done on the platform and what they will be doing in the future.  

IGN has lists of the Best PSP Games of 2006 and the Best PSP Games of 2005. 

For you librarian guitar heroes out there:

Tonight’s episode of South Park is sure to be a rockin’ good time. “Stan and Kyle are hooked on Guitar Hero. But Stan’s superior skills on the video game damage his friendship with Kyle.”