A land called If…
A role-playing game for the iPad
If… is a heroes journey adventure game meant to teach social and emotional learning skills published by the If You Can Company, which was founded by Trip Hawkins, the founder of Electronic Arts and EA Sports, and is the product of a mind trust of gaming, education, and emotional intelligence experts. It is much more than an app, rather a role-playing game developed specifically to be played on the iPad.
Interactions with various characters within the game challenge the child to figure out how to react to and treat them in order to get through the hurdles they face. The game is designed to improve emotional intelligence, and help kids learn how to deal with people, frustration, and disappointment better in the real world. The question is whether or not kids do take the lessons they learn in the game world and apply them to the real world.
If… is a slow-build kind of game (as most role-playing games are). Your child will have to have patience to play it as much of the time there is not a lot going on. Until you get into the story and game, it isn’t very engaging. My child entirely skipped the story and just wanted to run around testing the limits of the game. Then he was bored with it. But, then again, he’s three.
Younger kids won’t be attentionally or emotionally ready to play this game well and really get something out of it. The recommendation of 9-11 years, I think, is totally appropriate. Not only do kids have to be able to read and follow the story, but understand that the social interactions make a difference in the game play. There are developmental requirements, like learning to read and development of the brain’s emotional centers, at work here that cannot be subverted easily.
Adults can absolutely play this game with kids, and ask why they respond to certain situations a particular way to stimulate personal reflection. This kind of adult-child interaction in conjunction with the game play will certainly help solidify the lessons as applicable to real life. Younger kids will definitely need adult help to navigate the options.
Overall, this game is beautiful. It is very high quality with colorful graphics and well-cast voices. Also, to make the game as personal and educational as possible, parents can be updated on their child’s progress, there is no social sharing enabled, and there are no in-app purchases. The sales model is unusual: the first chapter is free, and it costs $5/ month thereafter to play additional chapters.
The second chapter is slated for release sometime soon. I’m looking forward to seeing how the story progresses.
