project myome Why myome? Sounds like biome Similar to my own or my home, establishing a sense of belonging and ownership among users Acronym (my ONLINE MULTIPLAYER ECOSPHERE) For my design project, I wish to create a website prototype designed to educate children between the ages of 6-10 about environmental and wildlife-related issues. Inspired by the success by such franchises as NeoPets, Club Penguin, Webkinz, and Pokémon, all of which feature playable online characters with which children can interact, I would strive to create an initiative in a similar vein but with an ecologically-responsible focus. I will design a line of characters representing various animals and, to a lesser extent, plants that are symbolic of pressing issues, as well as an online virtual world representing real-world biomes and ecosystems in which the characters live. Each player would be able to start with a single online avatar, and learn about the issue surrounding that particular creature (for example, one user might select a coral-like character, and thus receive information tailored to that age range on coral bleaching and the death of the Great Barrier Reef due to climate change). Through solving puzzles and playing games throughout the online environments, perhaps even with other online players, children could earn points which they could then exchange for virtual prizes, such as new pets thus, they would have the opportunity to learn about issues surrounding those characters. Players could also acquire new playable pets by making a donation to a charity or foundation helping that creature s particular cause. As the player and their virtual pet travel the online world, they could solve puzzles and play games that would help resolve an environmental issue affecting that biome. As it would be an online initiative, there would be continuous opportunities for expansion and growth, such as introducing new puzzles, games, and pet varieties; while my initial concept is for animals that could act as mascots for current
issues (such as global warming, habitat destruction, prey depletion, overhunting, etc.), new series could be introduced later, such as already-extinct characters which could share their sad stories with players. This program is meant to innovatively foster a sense of care and responsibility for wildlife in future generations of children; by creating fun and relatable characters which could speak to an international audience, important messages of practicing good stewardship and maintaining biodiversity messages which right now often depend on heavy statistics or gory footage will reach young people. Online virtual worlds have proven immensely successful, both culturally and financially; both Webkinz and Neopets are visited by millions of registered players daily, and Pokémon Black and White, the most recent installments of the hugelysuccessful video game franchise and the first to introduce a virtual world, set sales records internationally on their first day of release in the United States alone, the two games sold over one million copies. Not only do online worlds allow children a great deal of creative freedom (i.e., through the purchase of online goods to decorate their character s homes, accessorize their pets, etc.), but many parents condone these games capacity to teach children money management, foster responsibility, and assist reading and other developmental learning skills. There also seems to be great interest in virtual worlds within the corporate sector, with over $1 billion USD invested in such games between 2006 and 2007 alone (this being even before the advent of Webkinz). Given the educational nature of myome, as well as the large and detailed world, variety of characters, and endless possibilities for educational online games, I think that there would be great promise for such an initiative. The two most popular online worlds currently, Club Penguin and Webkinz, are both Canadian start-ups, so myome is part of a very established and well-received trend.
Sources: Barakat, M. (2007, July 12). Review: Webkinz site not just for kids. [Online]. Available: http://fe15.news.sp1.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070712/ ap_on_hi_te/tech_test_webkinz;_ylt=aqqvj0kfaoh2zddnomftlw9j24ca BBC News (2008, May 9). Boom times for virtual playgrounds. [Online.] Retrieved May 20, 2008 from http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7390218.stm Hefflinger, M. (2007, October 3). Report: $1 billion invested in virtual worlds over past year. DigitalMediaWire.com. [Online]. Available: http://www.dmwmedia.com/news/2007/10/03/ report-1-billion-invested-in-virtual-worlds-over-past-year Educational Games Research. Funding models and educational uses of virtual worlds. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://edugamesresearch.com/blog/category/webkinz/ Educational Games Research. Researching the Webkinz phenomenon. Retrieved March 20, 2011, from http://edugamesresearch.com/blog/category/webkinz/ Jesdanun, A. (2007, July 13). Sites introduce preteens to networking. [Online]. Available: http://fe15.news.sp1.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070713/ ap_on_hi_te/social_networking_tweens;_ylt=alcbunlip_3kfnb5.ne26xfj24ca Navarro, M. (2007, October 28). Pay up, kid, or your igloo melts. Newyorktimes.com. [Online]. Available: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/28/fashion/28virtual.html VirtualWorldsManagement.com. (2007). $1 billion invested in 35 virtual worlds companies from October 2006 to October 2007. [Online]. Available: http://www.virtualworldsmanagement.com/2007/index.html
Stelter, B. (2008, March 18). Online games by the hundreds, with tie-ins. The New York Times. [Online.] Retrieved March 17, 2008 from: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/18/business/media/18adco.html?_ r=1&ex=1363492800&en=78d59ce77ce71d4b&ei=5088&partner= rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin Prototypal designs of various Asian animals
myome map 1
myome map 2