Archive for April, 2007

Good Games

Monday, April 9th, 2007

No, this is not about the coolest, best and most spectecular new video games but about good video games as in “doing good“. HopeLab a non profit organization in the area of San Francisco has dedicated itself to combine rigorous research with innovative solutions to improve the health and quality of life of young people with chronic illness.

Their first and most popular product is Re-Mission, a “challenging, 3D shooter with 20 levels that takes the player on a journey through the bodies of young patients with different kinds of cancer. Players control a nanobot named Roxxi who destroys cancer cells, battles bacterial infections, and manages realistic, lifethreatening side effects associated with cancer”. Watch the making of video here.

The other game might not entirely fit in the category “good game” but it’s another exepctional game. PeaceMaker by Impact Games is a game where you either play the Israeli Prime Minister or the Palestinian President. It is inspired by real events in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and your goal is to achieve a two-state solution in order to bring peace to the region. Read an extensive game review on Gamasutra here.

I like the idea of games that “do good” a lot and I’m wondering if a MMOG such as a browser game could be designed to do good too.