E3, The Electronic Entertainment Expo, was just last week, so there’s quite a bit of videogame news circulating about the internets right now. Amid the waves of game trailers and press releases, most of us could be forgiven for not knowing that during the hubbub of the convention, a number of scholars and educators held a panel on games and learning at theUSC Gamelab, with participants from the ESA’sGovernment Affairs team, the Higher Education Video Game Alliance, and a number of educational organizations. For me, just the fact that representatives from the videogame industry, higher education, and various government agencies (including the Swedish Minister of Upper Secondary School & Education) came together to discuss the use of games in education was very exciting. In general, the tone of the panel seemed to echo my enthusiasm. There was much talk of the vast potential of games-based learning, as well as the urgent need to realize this potential. Not surprisingly, the online discussion happening around the panel brought out both people’s aspirations and concerns for the future of educational games. I think that many of these anxieties can be summed up in a single word: Gamification.
