A game called x-life is being launched by the US State Department and is available free of costto people from other cultures. The game uses a role playing model where a person can choose the role of a student or a musician and simulates the arrival to the united states for studies. The game lets the users improve their command over English and showcases several good aspects of the american culture. The game was developed for a total budget of $415,000, and after one week of its launch last month, has managed to get about 120 people try it. The goal is to get about 10,000 active users over the next 12 months.
Check it out here: http://www.xlifegames.com/
The effort is commendable, and in the right direction, as cell phones become more and more pervasive all across the world and connection speeds and phone capabilities increasing by the day. Governments and other organizations are realizing the power of cellphones to reach out to non-western cultures. ( Tangent: Worth mentioning here would be the research of Gary Marsden, a researcher at the Cape Town University on the use of cellphones in empowering cultures. Check out Gary's blog: http://web.mac.com/hciguy/iWeb/udev/Under%20Development/Under%20Development.html
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But seems like the game has a long way to go in terms of usability if the government wants to get more users and keep them. As of now the game seems to be buggy, hard to play, and in its current state, quite a frustrating experience for the users. And it is available only in 2 phone models - the Nokia N series, and Sony Ericcson P1.
Here is what a user has to say about the game experience in its current state
"So there I am, there is nothing left for me to do. I can't leave the room. I can't watch TV. The guy won't say anything else to me, and I'm not sure how to visit a Web site (to get the visa) ... so at this point I would be 'delete,' go on to something else," he said. "I got a free trip to America but I can't get there."
Oh no.. not again.....
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