Island is a multiplayer game designed for elementary school students. Its primary purpose is to study the effectiveness of collaborative learning on a game with no storyline (cf. Avalanche).

Island runs on Apple PowerPC computers on an ethernet or localtalk network. The game can be played alone, but some puzzles do require a partner.

A group of players, represented by unique icons, are stranded on an island. The current objective of the game is to earn building materials by winning puzzles and to use these materials to construct houses.

The Story

There is no set storyline, and it is up to the students to create a story of their own, if they wish, or to play by an alternate motivational method.

The Players

The eventual gaming strategy of Island is to have an entire class participate in the same island. While only a limited amount of players can be playing at once (currently this limit is four), all the students will load the same Island game and continue building on the same island, creating some sort of community.

The Puzzles

There are so far two puzzles in Island, Builder and Prime Climb. Each has varying difficulty levels and corresponding rewards.

The People (subject to major revision)

Island is an EGEMS project. The founder and director of EGEMS is Dr. Maria Klawe.

The Progress

A pilot study of Island has just been completed at Trafalgar Elementary School in Vancouver, British Columbia. Reports written by Tim Chen are available here. Work is proceeding on Island and it is hoped that the next test run of Island will be conducted at Kerrisdale Elementary sometime starting in April.

The Future

Student feedback will always be an invaluable source of advice on the direction of Island development. The best of the student wishes will be implemented in a way that the EGEMS members feel will be conducive to the Island learning experience. Work on Island will continue to ensure that the goal of a unique, enjoyable multiplayer educational game will be achieved.