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That's Edutainment 2
By Tom Houston
December 1999
Last June, having finished playing Cryo's historical adventure games Versailles 1685 and Egypt 1156 BC, I put my thoughts about these games together in an article entitled That's Edutainment.
At that time I raised several questions, including: Why would a company that publishes computer games even think about developing and producing games that combine interactive adventure stories with historical, cultural, and encyclopedic resource materials? On the one hand, we're talking about visually spectacular 3D adventure games with interesting characters, plots based on mystery and intrigue, and puzzles that are seamlessly woven into the story lines. On the other hand, we are being presented with the opportunity to explore important historical locations, study collections of artworks, plans, maps and other resource documents from the past, and learn about cultures that had significant impact on the evolution and growth of civilization and humanity.
Considering the popularity of producing and marketing cross-genre computer games these days, how could this edutainment combination compete with "action/adventure" or "arcade/action" games for the customer dollars that the publishers and distributors of computer games seem dedicated to serving? Cryo must think that there is an audience willing and anxious to buy and enjoy the combination of experiences provided by edutainment games.
Now, six months later, it's December 1999, and Cryo has continued to illustrate its belief and faith in the market for edutainment games, since it has released two additional title games, Chine: The Forbidden City and Aztec: The Curse in the Heart of the City of Gold. Further evidence of Cryo's commitment to edutainment games that has provided encouragement to us all is the recent announcement by Cryo that it is planning additional edutainment games with the development of Egypt 2, Jerusalem, and Pompeii (at least I think these might be edutainment games?!).
So what does Cryo know about an audience for edutainment games that is not so apparent to many other producers of computer games?
Since, up until now, Cryo has concentrated its distribution primarily in Europe and ignored the U.S. market, does this mean that it feels the U.S. market will not respond favorably to these games?
A large enough population of mature-thinking Europeans evidently like adventure games and have a tolerance for extending their cerebral energies beyond the plot and puzzle aspects of the games and into the world of educational refreshment and/or learning that is centered on exploring and discovering important and fascinating cultural times and events from the past.
Previously, I had asked the question: Does an audience fitting this description also exist in the U.S.? The answer: Of course it does.
Recently, I imposed upon my friends on the Adventure Game Discussion forum at GameBoomers to help me develop a profile of the demographics of an adventure gamer, and they responded with some wonderful input and thoughts that will form the meat of a subsequent article. For now, I will say that the single overriding suggestion was that adventure gamers share a passion for reading and literature.
When one considers the likelihood that avid readers can easily make the transition to adventure games, you can begin to see the audience that edutainment games can reach out to. Books certainly satisfy an important and growing part of our desire to invest some of our leisure time in education and entertainment. Obviously, not all "readers" are playing adventure games, so there is a very large untapped audience among the mature-thinking reader population out there that is begging to be reached.
Maybe if the publishers of edutainment games, and adventure games in general, put the games in bookstores, alongside the mystery, historical, science fiction, horror, and detective books, this untapped audience might see the opportunity in and value of expanding their educational and entertainment horizons to include the interactive experience that adventure games will bring to them. Whereas readers must visualize, imagine, and project themselves into the characters and the story, so too must the adventure game player use these same mental processes to interact with the characters and solve logical puzzles in order to unravel the story.
At the risk of stealing Randy's thunder, although it may already be revealed by the time that this article is published, Cryo has indicated (through its U.K. public relations office) that it will be giving much more attention to and focus on the U.S. market with regard to the distribution of its games. Precisely what form this will take remains to be seen. Making it easier to preview, review, and purchase Cryo's games would be a start. Some U.S.-based marketing and distribution would be even better.
If the adventure game genre needs a resurgence, the real opportunity for growth may very well rest with understanding the demographics of the potential buyer of these games and implementing a marketing effort and direction that will reach the untapped audience of readers, rather than trying to cross-breed adventure game elements into action, strategy, or other genres. Just my opinion, but I'm sure that it is shared by many.
As far as edutainment is concerned and, in fact, the current state of pure adventure games, I enthusiastically say, "Vive Le (La) Cryo!"