That’s Edutainment

By Tom Houston
June 1999

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? They must think that there
is an audience willing to buy and enjoy this combination of experiences.

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 stories. 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.

Well … that’s edutainment, a curious but extremely interesting
combination of educational materials and a true, classic-style adventure
game.

Not exactly a combination that one would think of when considering the
popularity of marketing cross-genre computer games in today’s computer
magazines and computer game stores. After all, how could this combination
compete with “action/adventure” or “arcade/action”
for the customer dollars that the publishers and distributors of computer
games seem dedicated to serving? I propose a possible answer to this question
later.

Now that we have defined to some degree “edutainment games,”
it would seem appropriate to provide a couple of prime examples of such
games. The best “edutainment games” that I have found and played
were developed by Cryo Interactive Entertainment and published by Cryo
in conjunction with Reunion des Musees Nationaux, Canal+ Multimedia.

My first was Versailles 1685, A Game of Intrigue, which takes
the player to the magnificent palace of Versailles and the court of King
Louis XIV. But something is not right … someone wants to destroy Versailles,
and you (the player) must stop him. As the adventure unfolds, you get
to explore every corner of the palace and its grounds, find clues, converse
with the royal family, the ministers, artists, servants and ladies of
the court and unlock the mysteries of the conspiracy that threatens the
very survival of Versailles. The gameplay, story, graphics, sound and
puzzles are richly presented and provide an excellent adventure game experience.

The bonus reward for the game player is that along the way one gets to
explore a stunning recreation of the rooms in the palace of Versailles,
study over 200 famous paintings up close, listen to a magnificent soundtrack
of baroque music (true to the period), talk to historical figures and
use a vast collection of reference documents from the court to refresh
your knowledge or to learn about this important period of history for
the first time.

My second foray into the world of edutainment was Cryo’s Egypt 1156
BC, Tomb of the Pharaoh, which Randy suggests should properly be recognized
as the original Tomb Raider.

This wonderful adventure game takes place during the reign of Ramses
III at a site that is now called Luxor. You will play Ramose, an ordinary
man in extraordinary circumstances, whose father has been accused of arranging
the pillage of a royal tomb. Your charge is to uncover the truth, show
the Pharaoh proof of your father’s innocence by exposing the real villain
and prevent your family’s name from being erased from history. You will
encounter the political, social and religious issues that not only affect
your progress through the game but also guided the Egyptian culture and
the lives of its people through a period of history where the mysteries
and discoveries have continued for over 3,000 years and remain a fascination
to many, even today.

As with all Cryo games, in addition to its captivating, historically
based mystery storyline, your character uses a first-person perspective
to visually enjoy the terrific graphics and beautiful sounds that represent
the people, places and everyday life of ancient Egypt.

Like Versailles 1685, this game has an educational bonus. You
can visit various important sites, such as the Tomb of Sethi I, the Village
of Deir el-Medineh, an embalmer’s workshop or the great temple of Karnak.
While there, you can discover the importance and meaning of the reconstruction
efforts that have gone on for centuries. You can also access a Documentation
Zone that allows you to learn all there is to be known about the Earth,
Time, People, Pharaohs and Gods in ancient Egypt at the time of Ramses
III.

So what does Cryo know about an audience for “edutainment”
games in Europe that is not so apparent in the U.S.? A large enough population
of mature Europeans evidently like adventure games and have a tolerance
for extending their cerebral energies beyond the plot, mystery and logical
thought processes of the game itself and into the world of educational
refreshment and learning that is centered on important cultural times
and events of the past.

Does an audience of this description also exist in the U.S.? Of course
it does. … Where does the mature adult audience in the U.S. go for “edutainment?”
Well, a couple of places come to mind, and the buying power represented
by these “edutainment” areas is tremendous.

First, there are the movies, where adventure stories of many classifications
(mystery, history, science fiction, detective, etc.) abound. Second, there
are books, where the same type of adventurous and historical experiences
can be enjoyed with increasing releases of new works.

The overwhelming majority of buyers are mature adults looking for “edutainment”
or simply the pure adventure of entertainment. What’s missing in movies
and books is the opportunity to interact with the story and the characters
and maybe even in so doing to affect the plot and the outcome of the story.
What we have here in the U.S. is a very large “untapped” audience
for interactive adventure games on the computer that can be made, promoted
and marketed in the same manner as the movies and books and in many cases
can be made as continuations of the experiences that the audience enjoyed
with the viewing of the movie or the reading of the book.

So what are the U.S. developers and publishers of computer games waiting
for? They can’t be waiting for an audience … it’s already out there,
and it has the buying power.

That’s edutainment.