3D game teaches kids Java programming (video)

Hexus published an article about CodeSpells, a 3D first-person problem-solving adventure game developed by computer scientists at the University of California in San Diego. Aimed at young students, the game initiates children into computer programming by requiring to conjure up magic spells in actual Java code.

The game is called CodeSpells. In the game you play the part of a wizard who arrives in a land populated by gnomes. During his travels, around the game’s 3D environment, the wizard helps the gnomes regain their lost magic. To do this the wizard conjures up magic spells; these spells aren’t written in olde English, Latin or even runic symbols but in actual Java.

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To spur players on there are not only tasks, where you type in/edit these code-spells to help out other characters in the game, players can also gain badges when they complete quests and master certain spells. This way, according to the report on Phys.org, “By the time players complete the game's first level, they have learned the main components of the Java programming language, such as parameters, for if statements, for loops and while loops, among other skills.” Furthermore they found, just like with any “good” game, the students were disappointed when they were asked to stop playing this adventure.

A beta version of the game is available for free, but unfortunately it's only for Mac.