Tipper SixSider points us to this CNET article, in which it is reported that the MacArthur Foundation is set to announced a $240,000 grant to Edward Castronova and his team to build "Arden: The World of Shakespeare," a Bard-based MMO.

Sounds nerdy. Castronova is an associate professor of telecommunications at Indiana University, and reputedly the "leading expert on the economies of virtual worlds."

What exactly the player is expected to do in this game is never laid out in a pat sort of way, but it sounds like a Shakespeare mod for any number of existing MMOs:

"If you collect the 'To be or not be' speech and then take it to a lore master or to a skilled bard, he can then apply the magic to your broad sword or you (could) utilize the magic in a battle situation to give you this massive (advantage)," Castronova explained. "So there (will be) this intensive competition to get the best speeches of Shakespeare in your play book.

Attacking giant enemy wizards for massive advantages. I'm not seeing how this is educational yet. Nobody actually reads quest text. Eliza Gauger

Shakespeare Coming to a Virtual World [CNET]

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