This would be a great supplement for ELL students or those struggling with basic vocabulary concepts. If you have students who are behind on basic grammatical skills, spending some time with Word Raider: Quest will provide some variety and encourage brushing up. The game doesn't really lend itself to whole-class activities, however -- it would be better as something to do at home or one-on-one.
Continue readingEditor's Note: As of July 1, 2015, Word Raider: Quest is no longer available.
Students act as archaeologists in this Indiana Jones-style platforming game focused on building important vocabulary through speaking, reading, and writing. Basic puzzles require players to use vocabulary words, all of which are introduced through clever animations before the game starts. For example, the animation for the word assure shows the entire word coming to a ravine. The a goes across to check for safety before beckoning the rest of the letters to join it. It's a nice device for implanting the words and their meanings in kids' minds. Gameplay, however, is slow and clunky, requiring kids to match words to their definitions (or the like) in order to open the door and escape the tunnel. It feels a little old-school. They can also "level up" words by completing writing and speaking tasks, which go to the teacher for assessment.
It's nice to see the writing represented here, as that's difficult to incorporate into games. The combination of animations and verbal/visual learning will help kids absorb vocabulary more readily. Beyond that, though, there isn't really much to the game mechanics. In addition, the best parts of the game from a teacher's perspective -- the writing, speaking, and responding -- are easy to skip over if the student doesn't care about leveling up (and they probably won't). Given the cost of the game, it's tough to justify the investment.