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What do moms like Donna K. Kidwell of Gamermom and Jenn Satterwhite of Aggroqueen have in common with venture capitalist Joi Ito and co-founder of Metroblogging Sean Bonner?
World of Warcraft.
WoW.
You might worry that online games place too much emphasis on killing and that your kids spend an unhealthy amount of time in a make-believe virtual world, but what if their involvement with massively multiplayer online games (MMOs) is actually teaching them valuable life skills? Gamermom puts it this way:
"It isn’t uncommon [at SXSW Interactive] to find that the CEO, CTO, CFO, or other prominently placed executive actively plays games online. Is it possible that the game you picked up for your child at Christmas has virtually introduced them to a future manager? Is your child’s behavior in game going to impress them with level-headed thinking, clear communications, and organizational leadership?"
Crazy talk written by a young child disguised as a gaming mom blogger? Joi Ito probably doesn't think so. As explained in Daniel Terdiman's article The business lessons of World of Warcraft, Ito "thinks WoW is also a valuable business tool that can be used to help companies learn how to work better."
Instead of discouraging kids to play games like WoW, perhaps we should be encouraging them. And what better way to show your encouragement, mom, than to play the game yourself?
Enter mommyblogger Jenn Satterwhite and her new blog Aggroqueen. In the About section, she explains how after being abandoned night after her night by her gaming husband and two tween boys, she wrote An open letter to the creators of World of Warcraft.
And much to her surprise, the creators of WoW wrote her back:
"It turns out [my letter] was amusing them. I began a fun email exchange with Jason (including requests for the much anticipated moon that I promised to send the developers so they could kiss my ass) and Jim. I had thrown down the gauntlet. Somehow Jason had managed to charm me enough into agreeing on my own free will to give World of Warcrap ...err... Warcraft a chance."
To find out if a team of developers and a family of gamers can turn a mommyblogger into a gamer, check out Aggroqueen. I know I will. To be honest, I don't understand a word of what Jenn writes and the comments people leave sometimes scare me, but I'll be there as a witness to her journey into the land of WoW. You've got my support, Jenn!
Hey, if you can't beat 'em, join 'em. And then beat 'em. But in the meantime, show your kids that mom's not such an old fart and may actually know a thing or two about... something. Gamey. Ahem. Because it turns out that it's good for them!
If you want to introduce your kids to games, but aren't sure if WoW is where you want to start, check out some fun video games that also incorporate exercise. Four were highlighted recently in an article -- Video Games Come Alive -- in Parents magazine. Gaming site Kotaku tells us:
"...the glossy for the pregnant set looks at four games that get your kids off their ass and on their feet to (gasp) play games.
The article takes a quick look at Dance Dance Revolution, the Eye Toy, Donkey Konga and Nintendogs."
[Hat tip to Jennifer Tsao for the link to Kotaku. And for sometimes serious, sometimes lighthearted insights to the world of gaming from the viewpoint of the Managing Editor of Electronic Gaming Monthly magazine, check out Jennifer's blog on 1UP. Oh, and in the interest of full disclosure, yes, she is my sister-in-law.]
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BlogHer Contributing Editor Mary Tsao also blogs at Mom Writes.
Image credit: Aggroqueen
