Muzzy Lane, Harvard Historian Partner For Serious Games

Educational game developer Muzzy Lane Software has announced a partnership with widely recognized author, Harvard historian and political commentator Niall Ferguson to create a new series of serious games addressing modern global conflicts. A Scottish historian and noted author, Ferguson is the Laurence Tisch Professor of History at Harvard University, and was recognized as one of the world’s hundred most influential people in 2004 by Time magazine. He is a weekly columnist for the Los Angeles Times, and a presenter of a documentary series for Britain's Channel 4 national TV station. In addition, it seems now that Ferguson has also recognized the potential of serious games as an educational tool as well. "I'm getting involved with Muzzy Lane because it's a chance for me to bring my life's work - not just the study of history but also the questioning of it - to a much broader audience," commented Ferguson. He is working with Muzzy Lane to co-develop a new series of computer strategy games that will allow players to compete as nations facing 21st Century challenges, from international terrorism to borderless economies. The new games will leverage Muzzy Lane's innovative SIGMA game engine, covered in depth recently by Serious Games Source. Muzzy Lane officials note that one of the key benefits of using the engine is that is will allow players and third-party developers to add new scenarios and content to the games. Ferguson added: "Video games are a cultural phenomenon, fundamentally transforming the way people think about how big things happen. Muzzy Lane's first game, Making History: The Calm & The Storm, convinced me that they are taking smart games to an entirely new level of historical sophistication."