Reports on themes emphasized at the April 1994 Computer Game Developers Conference held in Santa Clara (California), including the exploding CD-ROM marketplace and the potential and challenge of using CD-ROM's multimedia capacity to build cinema-quality stories and characters into computer games. Strategies for introducing more complex plots are…

Examines the evolution of multimedia simulation games on floppy disk and CD-ROM, and reviews uses of simulation games for education and entertainment. Discusses what is involved in building, marketing, and playing simulated games. Examples of game screens are displayed throughout the article, and a sidebar lists companies mentioned in the article.…

ToonTalk is an animated interactive world inside of which one can construct a very large range of computer programs. These programs are not constructed by typing text or arranging icons, but by taking actions in this world. Robots can be trained, birds can be given messages to deliver, and so on. This paper describes the design and preliminary…

Based on the presumed criteria by which Australian secondary school teachers would select computer software for their students' use, an adventure game concerning Australian gold rushes was developed. It and other games were tested by students in and outside the classroom. Criteria for selecting appropriate software for student use were identified.…

Researchers have claimed that while educational computer software does not necessarily improve students' academic performance, it does provide for students a more interesting and motivational environment for learning. It naturally fits in the context of students' learning since it can deliver nonstop actions, realistic sounds and vivid colors to…

A difficult task in creating rich, exploratory interactive learning environments is building an environment that is truly engaging. Engagement can be defined as the nexus of intrinsic knowledge and/or interest and external stimuli that promote the initial interest in, and continued use of a computer-based learning environment. Complete and total…

This paper discusses the use of WebQuest, a World Wide Web-based multi-user game, in promoting learning motivation and navigation skills in K-9 students. WebQuest demonstrates ways to integrate games, Internet communication facilities, Web-based courseware, and database techniques together in order to assist learning. The following guidelines for…