Tag: educational mobile games

Survey shows mobile games are growing more important among employers

| April 19, 2013

mobile gamesMobile games may be more than entertainment tools

A new survey from WorldatWork and Buck Consultants suggests that mobile games may be growing more important among large organizations. Mobile games are already wildly popular among consumers ,many of whom participate in gaming as a form of entertainment. The survey suggests, however, that these games could be used as tools to promote healthy living among employees. This may be accurate, as mobile games have been used in the past as education tools to encourage people to adopt healthier lifestyles or, in some cases, learn new languages.

Survey shows that employers are beginning to show strong interest in mobile games

According to the survey, which polled some 408 organizations across a broad spectrum of industries, 52% of organizations claim they are strongly considering adopting online and mobile games to promote health engagement among employees over the next three years. Approximately 73% of respondents claimed that these games could be used to encourage employees to improve and monitor their health. Some 32% of these organizations already use mobile technology to manage health care benefits in some way, and the initiatives currently in place could serve as a decent platform for exposing employees to mobile games.

Games show strength in education

Mobile games have been growing more popular in the field of education. Teachers have been seeing positive results from “gamifying” schoolwork, which involves introducing gaming elements into the learning process, often accomplished through using actual games. The education field has even become a very prominent market for the game industry, with many developers focusing exclusively on developing games designed for education.

Health and wellness could help cut insurance costs

According to the survey, 50% of employers already use one or more social networking platform or application to increase health care engagement among employees. One of the reasons organizations may be so interested in promoting healthy living is tied to health insurance. Health insurance costs can, in some cases, be reduced if companies adopt health and wellness programs designed to address the needs of those receiving employer-sponsored coverage.

Mobile games may be a powerful educational tool

| March 23, 2013

Educational Mobile GamesMobile games have their use in education

Mobile games are all about entertainment, but that does not mean that players cannot learn something from them. Educational games for mobile devices are becoming more common throughout the mobile space. These titles leverage the entertaining aspects of gaming to make education more engaging for consumers. In the U.S., these games are typically released by organizations like NASA, which has several mobile games to its name. This week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), launched its own game in order to promote learning.

CDC launches new disease-fighting game

The CDC has released a game specifically for the iPad called “Solve the Outbreak.” The game tasks the player with investigating the outbreak of a disease that could potentially threaten the world. In the game, the player adopts the role of a CDC investigator and will conduct tasks that are based on what actual CDC disease investors do in the field. The player is meant to discover the nature of the disease, its origins, and what can be done to mitigate its spread or cure it outright.

CDC shows interest in other mobile games

Like other organizations in the U.S., the CDC has been showing increasing interest in mobile games. These games are enjoyed by a huge number of people with mobile devices. Indeed, much of the game industry itself has become enthralled with the impact mobile games have had on the U.S. market. The CDC has taken a strong interest in a game that is very similar to its own, called Plague, Inc. This game allows players to create a disease, which they can name anything they want, and put this disease to the task of obliterating humanity.

Games are becoming an effective way to teach

The CDC is not the only organization using mobile games to promote education. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) makes use of a game based on the popular Tron franchise in order to help students learn more about improving network security. Outside of the U.S., the prestigious European Space Agency uses mobile games to improve software used to control robotic space flight.