SHS Gamers Entering National Contest

Video games aren't just playtime anymore, but also teaching tools. Games can be used to teach math and science concepts through playing them and in the creation of the games themselves.

The games make science, technology, engineering and math subjects (STEM) more interesting to students and is why ’s librarian Susanne Larson worked to start the school’s video game design club along with the technology advisor Monica Piquette.

Most schools’ video game clubs involve students getting together to play the latest "Call of Duty" or "Halo" game, but Larson said she wanted to go further than that an introduce the students to game design.

“It doesn’t just have to be play,” said Larson. The students use Gamestar Mechanic to learn about game design play playing games that explain concepts and vocabulary through gameplay as well as use the software to design their own games.

The students will all be designing their games for two competitions, the National STEM Video Game Challenge and a contest among the SHS students.

The national contest accepts submissions until March 12. The group has only met three times so most games are still in the conceptual stage.

Sophomores Matthew Ferreia and Brandon Purcell are planning to create a 3D shooting game that incorporates math problems into the gameplay. They also plan to set the game on different planets in the solar system and incorporate the planets different gravity and have that affect the gameplay.

Dan Fulton, Ryan Proulx and his brother Josh Proulx plan are using open source coding to develop a cell phone game that uses can customize and make their own.

Hannah Pelletier has one goal in mind for her math game and that’s for it to be too hard for Fulton to beat.

The winner of the National Competition will win an AMD-powered laptop with game design and other education software along with $2,500 for their school.

The winner among the Seekonk students will receive two tickets to the Penny Arcade Expo (PAX) on April 12 in Boston which is PAX is one of the largest gaming conventions in the country and features tournaments, guest speakers and other events related to gaming. The winners will also be interviewed by Microsoft’s Director of Programming for Xbox Live, Larry Hryb, better known by his Xbox Live gamertag Major Nelson.

Larson herself is a gamer and attends PAX every year. She and Piquette are also looking forward to the potential start of a video game programming class in January.

“We hope to be launching a pilot programming class in January,” said Piquette, adding that they were very close to having the administration fully on board.

Later in the year the club will also have speakers from Curt Schilling's 38 Studios and Microsoft talk to the students about videogame development.