The Chronicle of Higher Education sat down recently with Will Wright to talk to him about the value of educational games. Not only did they get some great money quotes, they got some great money business cards!
The interview starts off with Wright showing off his new business cards, which he's had printed on replicas of foreign money. It then quickly drops into the topic, pulling this gem of a quote from the famed developer:
"If you look at what people are doing with this technology it is, or has been, mostly directed at 12-year-old boys. But it has the potential to do a whole lot more."
Wright, when asked about educational and serious games, says that he thinks sometimes these games are a bit too focused on the idea, hinting that maybe they're not so fun.
What they need to do, he says, is be a bit more abstract in how they deal with the idea.
Why should serious and educational game developers listen to Wright? He's made a career out of making educational games, people just don't realize it.
Wright says, as he told me, that the real power in gaming isn't in its ability to educate, but its ability to motivate. Motivate people to educate themselves.