I am the project director of a new international educational adventure game company called Jumping Bean Studios. Our brand new web site is jumpingbeanstudios.com. We consist of computer programmers, artists, writers, sound technicians, musicians, sound technicians, and video experts as well as 3D computer modelers and animators who will be producing exciting and educational games for children and adults.

We are seeking a small group history teachers who would be interested in advising us throughout our first project. All of our games will be based on the idea of exploring history. Our first adventure game will be about the Wild West and what it was really like back then.

We also might be intersted in finding a knowledgeable person on the old west who is creative and would be interested in coauthoring the project with me this summer. If we can find the right person we might be willing to offer them a percentage of the profit on the first title.

If you know of someone who might be interested in advising us by email on what subjects would be the most useful to public school systems across the country and what type of material would make the game most helpful to teachers, and maybe even have a direct impact on the writing of our games, please have them contact me by replying here or email me.

Anone interested will need to sign a nondiscloser agreement that I will send them and they will need to email or fax it back.

We would also be interested in getting the input of a few sharp teenage students who can share with us what they would like to see in the game, and let us know if they like what we are doing along the way and give some positive criticism.

Patrick Ellis (The Futographer)
Project Manager
Jumping Bean Studios
futographer@cox.net

In the past I have been involved in simulations rather than games. The difference is that simulations attempt to recreate the past as closely as possible. If you are successful in doing this than you can sell them into schools as well as the home market.

In the early 1980s I was involved in designing several historical simulations for the early computers. These sold well to schools in the UK and the US. This included Into the Unknown (sailors exploring the world in the 15th century), Attack on the Somme (the military tactics of trench warfare during the First World War), Wagon’s West (pioneers travelling to California), Wall Street (recreating the events of 1929) and the Russian Revolution (recreating the events of 1917).

I think the Wagon’s West idea has the most potential for the adventure games market. It could be organized so that the students could get their background information from the web. For example see my website:

http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAamericanwest.htm

I am also a member of the E-HELP project. We are interested in working with companies to help create good historical simulations for use in the classroom.

John
What we are doing will both be an excellent simulation as well as a fun game with puzzle to be solved. It will be truely fun and highly educational at the same time.

Please reread the first post as I updated it. To summerize we are looking for...

1. Volunteer history teacher consultants who will also be beta testers.

2. Volunteer teen students who can give positive criticism and beta testing.

3. An old west expert who would be interested in coauthoring the first project this summer, possibly in exchange for a percentage of the profits.

It sounds like the E-HELP project is just what I am looking for. Please introduce me!

Thanks

Patrick

Is anyone else interested in consulting on this fun project? If you have any questions just ask. If you are interested, let me know who you think you could best help, and I will email you a nondisclosure form. Once I get that back from you I will send you a detailed outine and part of the storyline I have written.

Hoping you want to join in on the fun!

Patrick Ellis
Project Manager
Jumping Bean Studios
futographer@cox.net

Hello Patrick
I am also a member of the E-Help Project and would certainly be interested in getting involved in your project in some way. Please send further details to andy@educationforum.co.uk

This is a bad time to raise this issue on the forum. Teachers are currently on their Easter holidays and will not be visiting the Forum. However, history teachers will only be interested in getting involved in the project if it is a historical simulation. I for one, am not interested in adventure games. The idea of signing a non-disclosure document is irrelevant to this discussion.