Kotaku: Reading

The Best Apps for Turning Your iPad into an iPre-School

Mike Epstein — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 12:00:00 EDT

Kids and iPads are a better fit than you'd think—as long as those little hands are clean. More »

EA Enlists Ex-SAS Operator to Pen Battlefield 3: The Russian

Mike Fahey — Mon, 01 Aug 2011 10:40:00 EDT

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In a world flooded with video game novelizations, only one man has the background to develop the back-story of RU Special Forces operator Dima, one of Battlefield 3's playable characters. That man is not Sean Bean, but he was played by Sean Bean, which is pretty much the same thing. More »

A Robot That Knows How To Read

Mike Fahey — Mon, 06 Dec 2010 14:30:00 EST

Teaching a robot to recognize symbols is one thing; teaching a robot to actually read and understand those symbols is another thing entirely, but researchers in the UK are getting the job done, thanks to a little artificial intuition. More »

1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die

Mike Fahey — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 12:20:00 EDT

Coming this October from Universe Publishing, 1001 Video Games You Must Play Before You Die sounds like the sort of book that could seriously chew up your free time from now until you die. More »

EA FLIPS Make Reading Somewhat Fun

Mike Fahey — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 11:20:00 EDT

Reading is pretty awesome kids, but what about those stodgy old books, with their paper and the turning? Forget those. EA makes reading fun by putting books on your DS with FLIPS. More »

Games and Literacy: The NYT Take

Maggie Greene — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 14:30:00 EDT

Last week, we mentioned a LiveScience article checking out the educational uses of WoW; in my never-ending attempt to catch up from a weekend off, there's another article (this one from the New York Times) on the links between gaming and literacy in kids. It's a decently balanced piece, from the skeptics to the supporters, and it tackles a selection of current issues and future possibilities for the medium: More »

The History of RPGs: A Reading List

Maggie Greene — Sun, 18 May 2008 13:30:00 EDT

We mentioned Michael Abbot (of the Brainy Gamer) and his efforts to put together a great syllabus for his history of RPGs class; as promised, he's now posted the reading list (required readings will be culled from this list, but it's a pretty nice little bibliography for background reading). At this point, it just includes traditional books and articles, but he's planning on expanding it to online and popular media sources, as well as other good ideas sent in by people who are keeping tabs on this project: More »

Umbrella Chronicles Files Revealed

fdemarco — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 14:00:00 EST

You know all those files, notes and missives you run across in the Resident Evil games? The ones no one ever reads except for the few obsessives who like me, enjoy reading? Well, a fellow obsessive has managed to document all one hundred and nine files from the upcoming Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles. So if you're interested in the backstory, but don't want to stop your zombie massacre long enough to read them in-game, treat yourself to some weekend reading and check them all out at Resident Evil Horror. While you're there, take some time to click around as RE Horror has managed to put together quite an extensive collection of RE history, time lines and stories. Good weekend reading over coffee. More »

Guitar Hero Lures Children To Reading Doom

Mike Fahey — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 13:20:52 EDT

Hey kids! Don't go to the Humboldt Public Library in Humboldt, Iowa to play Guitar Hero. It's all a ruse. A clever attempt to trick you into reading the written word, perpetrated not by some wily librarian with a chip on her shoulder, but by your own, treacherous peers. Members of the Humboldt Public Library Teen Advisory Board are using video games to lure fellow students to the library, waiting for them to line up for a chance to play before leaping from the shadows, suggested reading in hand, in order to foster an interest in reading, which is what many of us did before video games were invented. Think of it as a lengthy prologue without voiceover if it helps. The group seeks to use the power of coolness to succeed where older, unhip librarians have failed.

TAB members say other students appreciate the advice.''They're usually very receptive because you're another cool teenager,'' said 17-year-old Sarah Wright, a senior in the fall.

If you referred to yourself as a 'cool teen' in my high school your body wouldn't be found for weeks. More »

MacArthur Foundation Contributes to Gaming Literacy

Kim Phu — Fri, 22 Jun 2007 15:20:00 EDT

The MacArthur Foundation has decided to contribute $1.1 million to a new public school in New York for 6-12th graders. The curriculum for the entire school will surround designing video games. The idea is that children have "gaming literacy", or in other words, teaching kids about dynamic systems. More »

50 Books That Every Gamer Except Florian Should Read

kotaku.com — Tue, 10 Oct 2006 09:40:11 EDT

One of the major obstacles in my career as a professional writer has been that I don't know how to read. I remember my first interview with Crecente, when he handed me his business card. I just stood there, blinking uncomprehendingly at the small little insects upon the gaudy pink-and-green piece of cardboard. Finally, I had to admit to him I didn't know how to read. More »