Links and Ladders 3

D&D

Dungeons&Dragons remains the Giant Ape (level 16) of the roleplaying world for a reason. Its popularity undiminished by the strange side quest that I believe 4th edition will ultimately be seen as, its current edition is bringing all sorts of new players into the hobby. As an educator, D&D is probably too complex as a starting point, but it’s useful to know how the game is structured, how it thinks of itself and why it matters. This article is so helpful in understanding its impact.

http://boingboing.net/2014/01/31/at-40-years-old-dungeons-dr.html

DEPRESSION QUEST

An elegant design that can help you as an educator understand the difference between games that are “fun” and games that have other intentions. If you aren’t sure about how video games can have a positive social impact, play this just once and let me know what you think.

http://www.depressionquest.com

AESTHETICS

Games can and should be beautiful. Their beauty can help one understand how it’s played and how it works, certainly, but at the end of the day, the best thing about a beautifully designed game is its aesthetics.

 http://www.artofthetitle.com/news/a-brief-history-of-video-game-title-design/

VINTAGE GAMES

Anyone up for some Yar’s Revenge? Venture? Xybots?

http://io9.gizmodo.com/the-vintage-videogames-that-you-still-want-to-play-1612309137