Berkeley Beacon article on serious games
In an article titled: Pushing Buttons :What's in a game? Education, for starters, should play a part author John Richardson opines about what serious games are and what more is needed to be more successful.
Choice quote : "Sadly, the average person does not likely find any of these games fun, since, quite honestly, most just are not very good. Educational games are a vital and very much needed effort, but many developers and researchers have seemingly forgotten that a game—no matter how serious its subject matter—cannot neglect fun! And not just because games, by definition, need to be fun (in fact, “serious games” seems to be oxymoronic...something the industry cobbled together and will hopefully abandon soon)."
Lots to quibble about but interesting read. As for the knock on labels (which we sort of agree with) for those of you who don't know the Berkeley Beacon is not a University of California publication but instead one for Emerson College in Massachusetts. Apparently the student paper was founded on the corner of Berkeley and Beacon hence the name. Making things all the more confusing the paper is no longer located there but is instead on Boylston Street.