Coventry-based Serious Games Institute could help firms through the recession
Sep 30 2009 by Anna Blackaby, Birmingham Post
Built on the site of a former Rolls-Royce factory in Coventry, the Serious Games Institute is carrying out pioneering work which could help recession-hit industries find new ways to reach customers. Anna Blackaby immerses herself in a series of virtual worlds to understand how they can help give the West Midland economy a shot in the arm
It’s the stuff of any Harry Potter fan’s dreams. As I sit and concentrate on a miniature dolphin on the computer screen in front of me, willing it to rise upwards, as if by magic the image starts to levitate by the power of my brainwaves alone.
US firm NeuroSky’s technology, which picks up on my state of relaxation and concentration via a headset, is the subject of research into its potential for helping youngsters manage anger and maintain their calm.
The programme is an example of how cutting-edge gaming technology can be used for purposes far loftier than helping a teenage boy pass time in his bedroom.
And the West Midlands is carving out a niche for itself as a hub for research and development into the area of “serious games” – games used for anything other than pure entertainment.
The term covers uses as diverse as conferencing, training Highways Agency staff on how to deal with potholes on a busy motorway or simulating life in prison to help youngsters at risk of offending understand the consequences of their behaviour.
The Serious Games Institute, based at Coventry University’s Technology Park, combines high level applied academic research with incubation space where spin-off companies and start-ups can receive the physical, and virtual, support they need to gain a toehold in this emerging market.
It’s perhaps symbolic that the site of the technology park is built on a former Rolls-Royce engine factory – an example of how the region’s tradition of innovation in manufacturing is finding a new lease of life in the gaming sector.
Serious Games Institute director David Wortley believes the serious games industry can have a powerful regenerative effect on Coventry and the wider region.
And not just on the digital-focused firms resident at the institute who are at the forefront of developing the new technology but also on more traditional manufacturers and retailers who could tap into new ways of interacting with customers from all over the world.
He described how serious games are opening up new possibilities for companies selling their products online.
“Where we will start to move towards is how we use the tools that we are involved in to give more traditional industries some competitive advantage,” he said.
“For example, one of the projects which we have got a funding bid in for is the next generation of electronic commerce. Currently e-commerce is what I call ‘man shopping’.
