When I was a kid, stories we were told were just make believe – all fiction and fairy tales – and if there were illustrations in the book, it would help fuel the imagination. Today’s world of stories, many times, include elaborate illustrations, put to video in a game where the entire world is made up by the game designers.
The rules are whatever the master game maker has decided would work to keep them interested. Characters appear, disappear, get unlocked, have powers and (or) skills. Materials, tools, animals are completely fabricated but in a make believe world that comes together like nothing else you’ve seen.
How clever these game makers are to invent tirillian ore and mooshrooms – the kids learn it so well, that they can speak this entirely different language.
There is no doubt kids could learn Spanish, or French, Italian or Latin…and quite probably Chinese or Japanese if the game were to feature those real things in a way that would engage their minds and capture their interest.
So, I’m putting this out there to inspire someone – if you can conceive of it and make them believe it’s fun…they might learn something really wondrous and have an even better time. No longer just for fun, it would make me believe that the time spent was more useful than just relaxing on an icy, rainy Sunday.