Get Your Game On Video Games in the Library

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Get Your Game On!Video Games in the Library

• Presented for Connecticut State Library
• by Beth Gallaway May 16, 2006
• informationgoddess29_at_gmail.com

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Gaming is the medium of choice for the millennial
generation
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Most frequent gameplayers gt 18

• 35

ESA. Top 10 Facts. http//www.theesa.com/facts/t
op_10_facts.php
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Teens that play games online

• 81

Lenhart, Amanda et al. "Teens and Technology
Youth are Leading the Transition to a Fully
Wired and Mobile Nation." Family, Friends
Community. Pew Internet American Life Project.
July 2005. http//www.pewinternet.org/PPF/r/162/r
eport_display.asp
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E-rated games sold in 2005

• 85

ESA. Top 10 Facts. http//www.theesa.com/facts/t
op_10_facts.php
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Women over age 18 and boys age 6-17 who play
games

• 28
• 21

ESA. Top 10 Facts. http//www.theesa.com/facts/t
op_10_facts.php
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Games are like books, they are just another new
format
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The Gamer Generation TM Characteristics

• Social
• Competitive
• Wired
• Self-aware
• Always On

• Heroic
• Multi-taskers
• Global
• Collaborative
• Risk Takers

Beck, John C. Mitchell Wade. Got Game? How the
Gamer Generation is Reshaping Business Forever.
Cambridge MA Harvard Business School, 2004.
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Learning principles in games

• Risk tasking in a safe environment
• Rewarding of practice
• Use of affinity groups
• Probing cycles
• Situated meaning
• Self-knowledge
• Identity formation

Gee, James Paul. What Video Games Have to
Teach Us About Learning and Literacy.
Palgrave McMillan, 2003
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Side Effects of Video Games

• Hand-eye coordination
• Pattern Recognition
• Reading Writing
• Physics
• Math
• History
• Geography/Map Reading
• Social Skills

• Mentoring Leadership
• Critical Thinking
• Problem Solving
• Creativity
• High self-esteem
• Loyalty
• Teamwork
• Calculated, Strategic Risk-taking
• Fun

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DDR screenshot
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Gaming builds developmental assets
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7 Developmental Needs of Adolescents

• positive social interaction with adults peers
• structure and clear limits
• physical activity
• creative expression
• competence and achievement
• meaningful participation in families, school,
• communities
• opportunities for self-definition

NMSA. NMSA Research Summaries. Young Adolescents
Developmental Needs (1996)http//www.nmsa.org/Res
earch/ResearchSummaries/Summary5/tabid/257/Default
.aspx
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Gaming Reinforces New Literacies

• Exposing Knowledge
• Employing Information
• Expressing Ideas Compellingly
• Ethics on the Internet

Warlick, David. The New Literacies. Scholastic
Administrator. Mar-Apr2005 http//www.scholastic.c
om/administrator/marapr05/articles.asp?articlenew
lit
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Exposing Knowledge

• Find information
• Understand and explain found information
  regardless of its format
• Evaluate information
• Organize information

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DDR screenshot
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Runescape
http//www.runescape.com
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World of Warcraft
Example of information gathering in game
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Employing Information

• Computation
• Measurement
• Analysis
• Application

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Lemonade Stand

http//www.lemonadegame.com
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Set Game
http//www.setgame.com
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Expressing Ideas Compellingly

• Mechanics matter
• Creativity efficiency highly rated
• Text, images, audio, and video are used to
  express ideas in many digital formats

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Fan Fiction
http//www.fanfiction.net/cat/209/
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Machinima
Warcraft Tutorial Warcraft Movies Red Vs. Blue
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Podcasting

• Mugglecast

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Ethics on the Internet

• Modding recreating game content
• FanFic writing stories about characters
  created/owner by someone else
• Machina films/videos created through recording
  video game play

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Success Stories
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Success Stories

• Santa Monica Public Library (CA) held a
  Counterstrike LAN party
• Ann Arbor District Library (MI) hosts Mario Kart,
  Super Smash Bros, and DDR tournaments for teens,
  adults and children
• North Hunterdon High School (NJ) hosts a
  student-run game night in the cafeteria
• Kansas City Public Library (Central) hosts a
  Runescape Marathon

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Success Stories

• East Brunswick Public Library (NJ) has been
  circulating games for 16 years
• Austin Public Library (TX) Wired for Youth hosted
  a Video Game Design Camp
• University of Waterloo Library uses a video game
  to train library staff in GovInfo Reference
  questions
• Carencro High School (LA) hosts a Game Academy
  for future game designers

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Success Stories

• Jervis Public Library (NY) incorporated games
  into the Teen Summer Reading Program
• Flint Memorial Library (MA) had a Game Night
  program
• Tulsa City-County Library (OK) has a Gaming
  Council
• Charlotte Mecklenburg County (NC) hosted a Halo
  Tournament for adults 18

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Success Stories

• Best Practices Library Success Wiki
• http//www.libsuccess.org

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Your Success Story In Print!

• Game On! Gaming and Libraries
• Neal-Schuman
• email Beth at informationgoddess29_at_gmail.com

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Dance Dance Revolution Free Play Tournaments

• Sellers Library (PA)
• Thomas Ford Memorial Library (IL)
• Tipton County Public Library (IN)
• Bloomington Public Library (IL)
• Ann Arbor District Library (MI)

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(No Transcript)
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DDR Recipe for Success

• One console (100-400)
• 2-4 dance pads (20-300)
• 1 game (25-60)
• 1 LCD projector
• 1 one large screen or white wall
• plenty of drinks!

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DDR / Guitar Hero _at_ the Library was

• Awesome cuz everyone gets along with each other,
  theres no waiting in line or nething (sic). Plus
  guitar hero is a wicked rad game.
• It was fun because im (sic) learning to play
  guitar
• I loved ddr I just started playing and when I
  started playing I really stunkthen I played for
  7 hours then im (sic). really good I love ddr
  now!!!

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DDR / Guitar Hero _at_ the Library was

• I liked this because theres too few of the DDR
  community around. This is a good opportunity to
  meet people with like interests.
• I had a really awesome time. I saw a lot of my
  friends I havent seen a few weeks and months. It
  was entertaing (sic) because DDr is a really big
  game now. Its a lot of fun too!
• Ddrgutiart hero fun

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WHAT IF I AM NOT READY TO DO A GAMING PROGRAM?
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7 THINGS YOU CAN DO TOMORROW to make your
library welcoming to gamers

• Use games to do readers advisory 
• Be a strategy guide
• Embrace your inner technogeek
• Be flexible
• Plan change
• Immerse yourself in pop culture especially
  video game culture
• Try some games!

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1. USE GAMES TO DO READERS ADVISORY

• INSTEAD OF
• What authors do you like to read?
• What are the last 3 books you read and enjoyed?
• What did you like about them?
• ASK
• What movies do you like?
• What TV shows do you watch?
• What games do you play?

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Roleplaying/MMORPG Games

• GAMES
• Everquest
• Runescape
• World of Warcraft
• Dark Age of Camelot
• Ultima
• SUGGEST
• epic fantasy
• historical
• war
• Authurian legend
• fractured fairy tales

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Historical Simulation Games

• GAMES
• Civilization
• Caesar
• Age of Empires
• Oregon Trail
• Americas Army?
• SUGGEST
• biographies
• historical fiction
• mythology

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Sports Games

• GAMES
• Madden Football
• NBA Street
• Need for Speed
• Tiger Woods
• Golf
• WWF
• SUGGEST
• sports
• adventure
• biographies

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Strategy Puzzle Games

• GAMES
• Myst
• Tetris
• Bejeweled
• Where in the World is Carmen San Diego?
• SUGGEST
• mystery
• thrillers
• travel
• puzzle books

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First Person Shooters (FPS)

• GAMES
• Doom
• Quake
• Halo
• SUGGEST
• military fiction
• horror
• apocalyptic fiction
• science fiction

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Simulations

• GAMES
• The Sims
• The Urbz
• SUGGEST
• sociology
• dysfunction
• relationships
• romance
• architecture

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Japanese/Manga tie-in

• GAMES
• Katamari Damacy
• Final Fantasy
• Dragonball Z
• Pokemon
• SUGGEST
• manga
• Japanese culture
• graphic novels
• drawing books
• anime films

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Superhero Games

• GAMES
• Spider-Man
• Fantastic Four
• City of Heros
• SUGGEST
• comic books
• graphic novels
• biographies
• mythology

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10 YOUNG ADULT NOVELS WITH GAMING PLOTS

• Bloor, Edward. Crusader.
• Card, Orson Scott. Enders Game.
• Horowitz, Anthony. Eagle Strike.
• Lubar, David. Wizards of the Game.
• Skurzynski, Gloria. The Virtual War.
• Tangherlini, Arne. Leo_at_fergusrules.com.
• Vande Velde, Vivian. Heir Apparent.
• Vande Velde, Vivian. User Unfriendly.
• Werlin, Nancy. Locked Inside.
• Wieler, Diana. Ran Van series.

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NONFICTION

• Compton, Shanna. Gamers
• DeMaria, Russel Johnny L. Wilson. High Score!
• Weiss, D. B. Lucky Wander Boy. 
• Official Prima Strategy Guides. Prima.
• ADD Players Handbook.
• Moursund, Beth. Magic The Gathering Official
  Strategy Guide.

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GAMING MAGAZINES

• Computer Gaming World
• Dragon
• Electronic Gaming Monthly
• Game Informer
• Game Pro
• Nintendo Power
• Official X-Box
• PC Gamer
• Play
• Playstation PS2
• Tips Tricks

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HOMEWORK for LIBRARIANS

• Beck, John C. Mitchell Wade. Got Game? How the
  Gamer Generation is Reshaping Business Forever.
• Gee, James Paul. What Video Games Have to Teach
  Us About Learning and Literacy.
• Howe, Neil. Millennials Rising The Next Great
  Generation.
• Jenkins, Henry III and Justine Cassell. From
  Barbie to Mortal Kombat Gender and Computer
  Games.

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HOMEWORK for LIBRARIANS

• Johnson, Steven. Everything Bad is Good For You
  How Todays Popular Culture is Actually Making Us
  Smarter.
• Katz, John. Geeks How Two Lost Boys Rode the
  Internet Out of Idaho.
• Prensky, Marc. Dont Bother Me Mom--Im Learning.
  
• Tapscott, Don. Growing Up Digital The Rise of
  the Net Generation.

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2. BE A STRATEGY GUIDE

• Dont be a level boss.
• Show, dont tell.
• Make it interactive.
• Get them started.
• Have a free-for-all.
• Ask for a demo of expertise
• Be open-minded

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3. EMBRACE YOUR INNER TECHNOGEEK

• Upgrade.
• Get a screen name.
• You cant break it.
• Pilot projects.
• Read tech news.

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4. BE FLEXIBLE

• Change the space.
• Say yes.
• Go meta.
• Customize.
• Change yourself.
• Flexible furnishings.

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5. PLAN CHANGE

• Sticky content for your website
• Sticky content for your facility
• Accept change
• Write it into the long range plan

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6. IMMERSE YOURSELF IN POP CULTURE

• Know whats hot/whats not.
• Pop goes the library
• Know about crossovers.

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ESPECIALLY VIDEO GAME CULTURE

• Watch Red Vs. Blue.
• Read Penny Acade or PvP.
• View PBSs Culture Shock You Decide Video Games.
• Skim gaming magazines.
• Link.
• Pay attention to gaming news.

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Video Game Culture

• Join the LibGaming Google Group at
  http//groups.google.com/group/libgaming
• Read the Game On! Video Games in Libraries blog
  at http//libgaming.blogspot.com
• Take an online class on Video Games and Libraries
  from Simmons GSLIS http//www.simmons.edu/gslis/
• Participate in the YALSA gaming interest group.
• Attend YALSAs Teens Technology Midwinter
  Institute in 2007.

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7. TRY SOME GAMES

• SET GAME DAILY PUZZLE
• PENGUIN BASEBALL
• BEJEWELED
• CHICKTIONARY
• BOB THE BLOB
• NEOPETS
• RUNESCAPE
• DINER DASH
• CABOODLE
• SNOOD

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OTHER GAMING SITES

• APPLECORE
• BONUS
• CITYCAFE
• FUNBRAIN
• GAIAM
• GIRLS GO TECH
• GIRL TECH GAMES CAFÉ
• PLAYFIRST
• POGO
• QUEEN BEE GAMES
• J OTTO SEIBOLD
• SHOCKWAVE
• WHO WANTS TO BE A MILLIONAIRE?