Where Angels Fear to Tread...

...is a favorite track of mine from the Seiken Densetsu 3 Original Sound Track. I've been given a rather interesting assignment; cracking one of the toughest nuts in all of game design(non-video game design included!)

"Educational" strikes more fear into the hearts of those in the game industry.  Until "Brain Training" for the Nintendo DS, the world of "educational interactive software" was riddled with failures. No, I shouldn't say that, Carmen Sandiego moved quite a few units as she demonstrated how much fun geography and history could be when placed in a sleuth/adventurer package.

I've got a bit of a cognitive science/psychology background and boatload of fairly vivid childhood memories(if not, there's always mom, a photo album and a box of old toys if I'm really hard pressed) and so I feel like I can get a good idea of what really young children are capable of perceiving, let alone enjoying.

Part of me is really wondering about video games for the 2 to 5 year old segment.  To be honest, I really don't believe kids of these ages should be plunked in front of a TV watching a bouncing ball go across the screen.  Actually having the kid go out and bounce the ball him or herself at the age fires off way more synapses than brain training could ever claim to set off.

Is it possible to make a game that actually encourages the player to stop playing it to do something else and still be fun?  It's certainly a challenge to look into!