gaming | Liam O'Donnell

Hello Kitty Online players must sing for their beta

by liam | Feb 24, 2008 | gaming, literacy, media

Like many folks following virtual worlds for kids, I was pleasantly surprised when Sanrio announced they were to release a Hello Kitty virtual world, Hello Kitty Online. And probably like many vw folks, I signed up for a beta account. Clearly, I’m not in the...

RezEd gets funding

by liam | Feb 21, 2008 | education, gaming, media, virtual worlds

Not much time to write about this, but the MacArthur Foundation just granted the great folks at Global Kids $72,000 to create RezEd, an online social network for educators intreresting in using virtual worlds in edcuation. From the MacArthur site: The Virtual World...

VW-linked toy hype in full swing at Toy Fair

by liam | Feb 18, 2008 | education, gaming, media, virtual worlds

Virtual World News reports on the unhinged hype of Webkinz copycats cramming themselves onto the real world/virtual world toy bandwagon. Toy Fair, the leading toy show and expo in the country, has barely kicked off, but virtual worlds-related toys are already making a...

Liking PowerUp, IBM’s multiplayer game for teens

by liam | Feb 15, 2008 | education, gaming, literacy, media, virtual worlds

I’ll admit that I’ve haven’t even finished downloading PowerUp, IBM’s new multiplayer game about the environment and alternative energy, but so far I like what I see. Check out their launch/promo video below and see for yourself: Adblock A...

UK schools teach literacy via virtual world

by liam | Feb 13, 2008 | education, gaming, literacy, media, virtual worlds

This is unbelievably cool and exactly the kind of educational potential I see in virtual worlds for kids [via Computer Weekly]: Schools in Barnsley are using virtual world software to teach children writing and comprehension skills. The borough council has implemented...