Video Games for Literature

PJ Haarsma’s latest children’s novel, The Rings of Orbis brings kids to a new level of storytelling interaction with an accompanying video game.  Haarsma believes the game element not only enriches children’s reading experience, but also speaks to a generation of kids who’d prefer to be in front of a screen than pick up a book. Whilst some educators may argue the use of a video game diminishes the imagination element of literature, Haarsma states his method

“brings the book into their world, as opposed to going the other way around.”

Video games are increasingly being used in education, with some believing that video games are teaching children a new level of “digital literacy”.  Publishers are following the trend, with Scholastic releasing ‘The Maze of Bones‘, a book which links to an online game.

[via The New York Times]