Tech Shout!

Electronic Arts has announced its plans to donate its original SimCity game to each computer in the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) initiative.

OLPC, for those who are unaware, is a non-profit humanitarian effort to design, manufacture and distribute inexpensive laptops, with the aim of giving every child in the world access to modern education. This initiative has been kick started by Nicholas Negroponte.

Now that EA is offering its SimCity game on each of these OLPC laptops, the entertainment company is hoping to nurture OLPC users when it comes to developing their decision-making skills and honing their creativity.

About EA’s SimCity:

In SimCity, the player takes on the role of mayor of a new municipality, and he/she will be responsible for building and maintaining a place where citizens can work and live happily. Doing so requires laying out essentials such as housing, transport links, schools, factories and shops. The job also requires an ability to choose wisely — for example, some power sources pollute, while others do not but are more expensive. Players must also be financially savvy — raising taxes enough to guarantee an income that can be allocated to public services such as policing and road repair, but not so high that business growth is hampered or that citizens revolt.

The mayor must always be prepared for emergency situations as well, as earthquakes, floods and fires can wreak havoc on the town and require an immediate response so that fallout can be contained.

It is interesting to know that the idea to connect SimCity with OLPC came from Internet pioneer, activist and OLPC advisor John Gilmore who knew the game’s history and recognized its potential relevance to the non-profit project.

According to Steve Seabolt, vice president of global brand development, The Sims Label, “SimCity is entertainment that’s unintentionally educational. Players learn to use limited resources to build and customize their cities. There are choices and consequences, but in the end, it’s a creativity tool that’s only limited by the player’s imagination. “The game should prove to be an incredibly effective way of making the laptop relevant, engaging, and fun, particularly for first time players. We are thrilled to be making this contribution to OLPC to help meet their goal of educating the children of the world.”

OLPC will begin distributing laptops in countries like Uruguay, Peru, Mexico, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Haiti, Cambodia and India by the end of 2007. It certainly is a great idea to offer EA’s SimCity, as it has the capacity to instill, as mentioned before, decision-making skills and other useful qualities in young children.