Educational Approaches to Alternate Reality Games
Augmented reality games are powerful venues to create suspension of disbelief that many videogames aim to create. Because these games rely on information and disinformation to create such a reality, they can be very effective at impacting the collective consciousness of the player groups involved in them.
The dissemination of information in a timely and widespread manner also plays a key role in the effectiveness of augmented reality games. Given that access to the Internet, cell phones and other mobile technologies has gradually reduced in cost and made them accessible to a large public base, educators can use these technologies to educate not only their students but the larger public on certain issues of interest.
A good example of how suspension of disbelief and the dissemination of information can be effective is the website A World Without Oil (AWWO). The premise of AWWO is that there are a series of hypothetical scenarios related to a fictitious worldwide oil crisis. It should not be interpreted that there is no oil crisis but rather that it hasn’t reached the critical levels portrayed in the game.
Members of the design team created a series of online electronic diaries of authoritative personalities claiming to see the effects of the oil crisis in their lives. They then encourage others to create their own documents about it as a way to move forward in the game.
As a consequence, a large knowledgebase of the actual oil market crisis, as well as other significant areas (solutions to the crisis, technology development, and alternate fuels) has been produced by a number of participants, making it a valuable resource to educators and students worldwide.