December 2011

Second Annual National STEM Video Game Challenge Opens With New Categories and More Prizes

Students, educators and industry professionals around the country have another chance to create their own compelling educational games with the launch of the second annual National STEM Video Game Challenge , a competition aimed at motivating interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) subjects by tapping into students' natural passion for playing and making video games. Building upon the success of the inaugural competition, the 2012 challenge opens with new partners, sponsors and entry subcategories in an effort to reach more students and generate more ideas for original video game concepts and designs.

Last year's competition garnered more than 600 entries from students, teachers, collegiate and professional developers. This year, the competition features additional entry categories for middle school and high school students as well as categories for undergraduate and graduate students and licensed professional educators. New subcategories introduced in the 2012 competition are the PBS Kids stream and the Sesame Street stream. The PBS Kids stream challenges entrants in each of the four main categories to design math-based video games for children in pre-K through grade four, while the Sesame Street stream tasks college students and educators to design a STEM-based video game for pre-K through first grade students.

The annual competition reconvenes original implementing partners, The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop and E-Line Media, along with sponsors Entertainment Software Association, AMD Foundation, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting/PBS KIDS Ready To Learn Initiative and Xbox 360. This year it also adds new outreach partners including the George Lucas Education Foundation, Girl Scouts of the USA and One Economy Corporation. In addition, the 2012 challenge launched in conjunction with Digital Promise, a new federal government initiative developed to unlock the potential that interactive technology has in transforming teaching and learning in classrooms across the nation. Together, the 2012 STEM Challenge partners are leveraging their reach to more than 10 million children to promote the competition and further the mission of Digital Promise, making STEM education a national priority.

Winners of the first annual National STEM Video Game Challenge were awarded more than $100,000 in prizes in March 2011 by Aneesh Chopra, U.S. Chief Technology Officer. This year, a total of $80,000 in prizes will be awarded to youth and youth sponsoring organizations in the middle and high school categories for submissions that feature stellar game play and creativity. In addition, a prize pool of $30,000 will be awarded to the collegiate category winners and a prize pool of $40,000 will be awarded to educator category winners to support the refinement and distribution of their games.

The 2012 National STEM Video Game Challenge is accepting entries from November 15, 2011 through March 12, 2012. Complete guidelines and details on how to enter are available at www.stemchallenge.org.

ESRB, Washington Capitals Join Forces to Encourage "Box Checks"

In time for the holiday shopping season, the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) and the Washington Capitals teamed up to promote awareness of the ESRB rating system among parents. The ESRB released a Public Service Announcement (PSA) featuring Capitals center Jeff Halpern and goaltender Tomáš Vokoun that aims to make parents more familiar with the ratings information available to help them determine which video games are right for their children. In the ad, the players encourage a father and son to do a "box check" before purchasing a video game, showing them where to find the game's rating symbol and content descriptor on its packaging. 

ESRB distributed the 30-second ad to television and radio stations throughout the Washington, D.C. metro area. The PSA also plays on video display boards during Capitals home games and on the Capitals website. 

The ESRB's partnership with the Washington Capitals is one of several relationships the organization built with professional sports teams to promote video game ratings. In 2010, the ESRB released PSAs featuring members of the New Orleans Saints and Chicago Blackhawks. These ads and other public awareness efforts have built recognition among parents of the rating system. As a result, 65 percent of parents report regularly checking a game's rating before making a purchase and 98 percent believe the rating system is helpful in choosing games for their children, according to Peter D. Hart Research Associates.

The ESRB also continues to develop new and improved tools to help parents access rating information. Last month the ESRB released an upgraded version of its ratings search app. Now integrated with voice recognition technology, this tool instantly provides parents with a game's in-depth rating summary simply by typing, photographing, or saying the name of the game into their iPhone®,  Android™ or Windows® Phone. The app offers timely access to ESRB rating information for more than 20,000 titles, in order to provide parents with a clear and detailed explanation of the content that factored into a game's rating.

Both the ratings search app and the Washington Capitals PSA come with the holiday season just around the corner. With more Americans than ever – 72 percent – playing computer and video games, it is safe to say that games will top holiday wish lists once again this year. As families look for the best games for their children, ESRB reminds everyone to "check the box" and look for a game's rating before making a purchase.

VIDEO GAMES BRING SOLDIERS TOGETHER WITH FAMILY AND FRIENDS

The winter holidays mean spending time with family and friends. Yet for the men and women of the armed forces who are serving overseas, this may not be the case. Given the popularity of video games among servicemembers, a number of organizations offer programs that enable families to connect through games online and help provide the joy of game play to our troops.

One of the first such programs launched in 2003 as a partnership between the U.S. Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), Microsoft Corporation and the USO , an organization that has dedicated itself to lifting the morale of U.S. military personnel and their families for 70 years. The program, Operation: Live Connections, equipped USO centers around the world with Xbox 360 game consoles, the Xbox LIVE online game service and a variety of game titles, enabling troops to play against their friends and family while catching up through Xbox LIVE's chat feature. USAFE's prior construction of 17 Xbox game lounges on 14 U.S. bases across Europe, and its research among airmen that determined online game centers were at the top of their wish lists, provided inspiration for the program.    

In addition to Operation: Live Connections, the USO also developed the Mobile Entertainment Gaming System (MEGS) Program. MEGS is a portable, self-contained multimedia system that supports Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Wii game consoles. Troops can play against their nearby colleagues, against friends at other bases, or challenge family members back home. The organization's USO in a Box program, a 250-square-foot unmanned USO center, also delivers entertainment and communications capabilities to overseas personnel, including Internet access and Xbox 360 game systems.

Pro vs. GI Joe is another organization working to provide troops with a unique game play experience while also connecting them with their families. The group sets up real-time video game competitions between professional athletes, musicians, celebrities and high-ranking military officials here in the U.S. and soldiers serving overseas via online game play. Families are invited to the location where the "pros" are playing, and are able to reunite with their loved ones through webcams. Most recently, several members of the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars challenged a group of soldiers from their home stadium, EverBank Field in Jacksonville, FL.

Still other groups focus on providing video game care packages that include both consoles and games to soldiers overseas, such as Operation Supply Drop and the Gamer Outreach Foundation's "Fun for Our Troops" initiative. Games for Heroes, Inc. specifically collects new and used handheld game systems for troops.

These programs and others help servicemen and women communicate with their families and enjoy the company of their colleagues as they challenge each other to a friendly game competition. Whether in-person or online, games can be a good way to connect with loved ones this holiday season. Now is the perfect time for gamers to get involved and find out how they can support these worthy causes.

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In the News

	11/21/2011 – Inspired By Your Life, a Custom-Designed Video Game – The New York Times
	11/17/2011 – Video: Washington Capitals Assist Video Games Rating Board – USA Today
	11/16/2011 – Why Our Daughters Need to Play More Video Games – Huffington Post
	11/14/2011 – 'High Demand' For Artists In Video Game Industry – Huffington Post
	11/1/2011 – Video Game Teaches Finances Through Football – The Seattle Times
	11/16/2011 – Video Games That Do the Body Good – The Western Courier (IL)
	11/13/2011 – Marketing Life Insurance Is a Game For AXA Equitable – Online – Hartford Courant (CT)
	11/9/2011 – NCSU to Develop Tutoring Game with $1M – Triangle Business Journal (NC)
	11/3/2011 – Preserving Bits – American Libraries Magazine
	11/1/2011 – DC Influencer: Rich Taylor, Entertainment Software Assoc. – PR Week

Latest News Releases

	11/15/2011 – Educational Video Game Challenge Now Open For Entries
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