The United Kingdom's Department for Transport has launched a free browser MMO, Code of Everand, that teaches traffic safety to children. It does so through a fantasy theme with direct parallels to real world dangers -- streets are Spirit Channels, glowing energy streams populated with many dangerous beasts.
Square-Go writes: "There are dozens of free-to-play online roleplaying games available. Mostly they run in an internet browser allowing access for everyone. The funding for these games has to come from somewhere though, they may be simple by the standards of modern videogames but they still require a reasonably large team to develop the games and a smaller team to maintain it. This money will usually come from either advertising or in-game micro-transactions, Code of Everand though is different, it received its funding from the British Government."
Edge writes: "Today, the UK government's Department For Transport unveils a new browser-based MMOG, created by New York-based developer Area/Code. Designed for early teenagers to learn principles of traffic safety, it's probably the largest 'serious games' project ever to be created for the UK.
Called Code Of Everand, the game is set in a land crisscrossed by spirit channels, hazardous lines of creatures which players, known as pathfinders, must battle using magic to dissipate. Exploration takes place using a top-down view, but the turn-based battles are experienced in firstperson view, requiring players to look around the scene for threats. The metaphors are obvious, all part of a delicate balancing act to appeal to the game's intended audience without patronising it by veiling too heavily its messages, nor making them so obvious that no one would want to play it."
