News Games – Not Just For Journalists Anymore
News games, sometimes called news games, are a sub-genre of online games that strive to apply certain journalistic principles to the making of the game. They may fall into several categories, such as historical, scientific, abstract, simulation, puzzle and trivia games. Most news games feature breaking news stories, though there are games that feature daily news from all over the world as well.
You might be thinking, “Why should I learn how to play new games when I could just click on a template message and the same news will come up?” This is actually a very good reason not to learn how to play new games – a template message usually contains information that you won’t find in any news articles. For example, if you are looking for the latest update on the health of the general public on a particular disease then you would type in “cancer” or “disease.” However, if you were searching for some kind of scoop on President Obama’s job performance in office then you might type in “news Obama jobs,” or “apse Obama job performance.” Then after you save the news game to your computer, whenever you want to keep an eye on the latest information about the president you just need to click on the “headlines” button at the top of the game to refresh the news.
If you have played any news games before then you know that most of them don’t tell a complete story. There are several sub Categories that include sub-categories like “breaking news,” “political news,” and “world news.” In these sub-categories you can find news items that are related to your favorite subjects. For example, if your favorite hobby is flying then you would probably want to find news about the latest military helicopter sale or first day Olympic gold medal. If you are into foreclosures then you may find news about foreclosures, government auctions, or short sales. The list goes on and so does your knowledge of all the different news game types.
Another news game that is similar to the “New York Times” style of game is the “New York Times” style of simulation. If you are familiar with the style of journalism that is now popularized by the New York Times, then you will also be familiar with this type of game. In the “New York Times” style of game you choose your starting city and then from there you will have to perform a series of tasks in order to get the information that the New York Times needs to write a front page story. The challenges will include filling out forms, attending phone calls, and so on. These games are extremely popular among people who are already avid “press reporters” because it gives them a chance to learn about the reporting process as well as gain skills and knowledge through being able to check information provided by other players and the “New York Times.”
There is one very unique news game that combines the skills and knowledge of traditional gaming with elements of journalism. In this game you play a reporter working for the Associated Press. Your job is to cover an event that occurs and obtain important information from all parties involved. This type of news game, although similar to other AP reporting games, focuses its lessons on news through a lens that viewing events through the eyes of a journalist. Thus, the gameplay is quite different than what you would expect in a traditional ‘Journalism’ style of game.
While these news games may seem rather simple and basic in comparison with more complicated types of gaming mechanics, these games have actually been used for instruction and training purposes in numerous different fields. For example, some of the most well known computer programming languages like C and BASIC use many of the same “cases” or “hyphenations” used in news games. Likewise, news games can be used to teach students basic reporting techniques, writing conventions, copy writing, interviewing, research methods, research, media production, networking skills, networking, presentations, persuasive writing, persuasive communication, interviewing techniques, background checking and more. Many of the most successful companies in the world use news games as teaching tools and to help train new employees.