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Using games to report the news

After reading Frasca's Videogames of the Oppressed, I started looking all over the Web for news sites that used games to report certain news events. The closest I came was with sites that created great non-linear stories that allowed the user to pick and choose how he wanted to experience the story.

Frasca argues that videogames are not trivial, but rather, they can be educational. However, he says, not all narratives should be turned into games. The story of Anne Frank, for example, would be a terrible game since the users ability to play the game well would be a determining factor in the life or death of Frank. But the non-linear approach where the user decides where he wants to take the story and how he wants it to develop will ultimately create a more engaged and educated news consumer.

Here are a few examples I found:

Washingtonpost.com
"Eyes on the War" is the story of 24 journalists who photographed the American invasion of Iraq. The narrative comprises photos with voiceover by the photojournalist. The user can pick who he wants to view in a little menu on the right. This story is not as flexible as most, but the user still has the chance to pick and choose which photojournalist's story he wants to hear and see.
Eyes on the War

The New York Times

"Asia's Deadly Waves" is a non-linear, interactive story that dealt with the December 2004 tsunami. The story opens with a map of Asia. As you click on different locations, a narrative about population and what happened there appears along with an option to view a slideshow. Also, at the top, there is a menu listing different countries with photos from each one.
Asia's Deadly Waves

PBS

"From Brooklyn to Pristina" is so cool! The story takes the surfer from Murfreesbro, Tennessee, where a gun is LEGALLY purchased, to Kosovo, where that same weapon is used in guerrilla warefare. The story also takes the form of a world map, and user clicks different destinations on the map to see how the gun gets from the U.S. to Kosovo. Text, video and photos are used to tell this story. From Brooklyn to Pristina

posted by Rita Florez @ 4:53 PM