Halo 3 and OLPC

Two articles are of interest today. One, from the New York Times, reports on the slam dunk that Halo 3 is for Microsoft. Over a million people have already pre-ordered a copy of Halo 3 at one of three price levels: $60, $70, or the $130 version complete with game helmet. Author Seth Schiesel sums up the money involved this way:

The Halo series, set in a future when humanity is battling a hostile alien race, has sold more than 14.8 million copies since its debut in 2001, making it one of the most successful game franchises. The last major game in the series, Halo 2, set a record in 2004 for first-day sales of any entertainment product, generating more than $125 million in the United States in its first 24 hours.

Halo 3 is expected to rake in around $150 million on its first day, a sum surpassing comparable products in other media such as books and movies.

The other big article deals with videogames only in passing, but it also focuses on the polar opposite of big game development, and big money. Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal ran a give and take between the One Laptop Per Child organization’s Walter Bender and the co-founder of eMachines, Stephen Dukker. Mr. Dukker also leads a start-up company called NComputing that offers software for inexpensive computer labs. Although few details are revealed in the dialogue, it appears NComputing can offer software for virtual workstations running in the neighborhood of $11/terminal. Mr. Dukker says, “The NComputing solution essentially taps the unused power of a regular desktop PC and enables seven students to use it simultaneously.”

The OLPC has caught my interest here before due to the fact some of the software programs in the distributed prototypes are game-oriented, thus maximizing learning potential. No indication is given if NComputing also offers gaming software in its product. Interestingly, Mr. Dukker brings up several of the oft-heard criticisms of the OLPC project (the money could be better spent elsewhere; it’s not really a $100 laptop; the countries involved have to order huge bulk quantities, etc.), giving the dialogue a tone of debate at times.

It’s an interesting exchange because wherever low cost computing goes, so too will the need for affordable pedagogical software (aka, instructional videogames). OLPC and NComputing are both worth watching from this perspective. I’ll be intrigued to read the research on new software developed for developing world platforms. And I’ll also be interested if any educational efforts come out of Halo 3. Certainly Halo 3 won’t be played on the OLPC product anytime soon (nor was this ever intended). But, perhaps the new game’s capabilities can be put to good use in a future educational product someday.

References:
Schiesel, S. (2007, September 24). Gamers, on your marks: Halo 3 arrives. The New York Times. [Online.] Available: http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/24/arts/24halo.html?ref=business

Will low-cost laptops help kids in developing countries? (2007, September 5). The Wall Street Journal. [Online.] Available: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118892795619917030.html