Serious Gaming is Serious Business...SRSLY.

"Serious Games" aren't about hardcore gaming, they don't have blood, guts and titties in them and they're certainly not about being a member of the MLG (Major League Gaming) either. Instead, serious games are games created for educational purposes to spread awareness on world issues. For example, a sim based on how to rectify/ameliorate/eliminate the situation in Dafur or how to properly distribute food to 3rd world nations as a member of the UN's World Food Programme. They are learning and enrichment games to be used by secondary schools, universities, world governments and medical facilities.

Though not from this year's Game Developer's Conference, here's a little snippet describing what you'd hear attending a lecture on serious games:

Description: This session is intended to improve an understanding of Japan's potential to be a leading developer of serious game and COTS crossover technologies. Toru Fujimoto, the volunteer coordinator of the Serious Games Initiative's Japan outreach effort along with Akira Baba (Associate Professor, University of Tokyo) and Kiyoshi Shin (Coordinator of IGDA Japan Chapter) will provide a report of their combined efforts to define and evangelize the emerging serious games scene in Japan. While not as well established as efforts in the U.S. and Europe Japan has a rich level of COTS games that may prove useful as models for game-based simulations. The panel will provide an broad overview of specificly identified projects underway and point out specific COTS products and technologies unique to Japan that might have crossover potential into serious game efforts. Among the specific examples they will preview are an MMP for education being developed as a joint research porject between Japan and Korea. A game for rehabilitation being used at Kanagawa rehabilitation center and several University of Tokyo's game design projects.

Still reading? Good. Here's one of the slides from the presentation:



This year, two of the most successful serious game titles mentioned (and available for play) were:

"Stop Disasters," a turn based strategy game where you play a UN/ISDR member--try to prepare as quickly (in as less turns possible) for the disaster thrown at you (possible disasters scenarios include, hurricanes, tsunamis and earthquakes.) And one created by the French government itself called, "Cyber Budget" where a player puts his or herself in a state official's shoes and must properly distribute the nation's tax monies into various industries.

You can check out the full article here in Japanese. (Plop it into Babelfish.)

It's long but it's good interesting reading. A big difference from the gaming norm that's all about having the biggest cup size/smallest waist, whomping zombies with machetes and/or eluding the cops.

And if you want....

Play Stop Disasters! at the link below:

http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/

Cyber Budget (in French):

http://www.cyber-budget.fr/

Remember "Lemonade Stand?" Where there you go. It got me to do math and have fun so...more power to the serious gamer and game developers!