video games

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick is the only player in the newest edition of the Madden NFL video game franchise to have his signature tattoos faithfully rendered in the game.

Sports

For The First Time, Real Tattoos Make Their Madden Debut

7:13pm August 24, 2014

by Becky Sullivan

Fear of lawsuits had kept tattoos out of previous editions of the video game, but San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick put those worries to rest when he secured the rights to his tattoos.

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Modern Video Games Go Beyond 'Jumping On Blocks'

12:35pm June 30, 2014

by NPR Staff

The creative director for BioShock Infinite, one of 2013's biggest video games, says as technology improves, so does the ability for games to tell complex stories with rich narrative structures.

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A screenshot of Half the Sky, where virtual successes sometimes lead to real-life donations.

World News

For Advocacy Groups, Video Games Are The Next Frontier

4:07pm December 01, 2013

by Laura Sydell

As video games become more mainstream, some social action organizations are using them to raise awareness or raise funds. They advocate for a range of causes, from the struggles of women in the developing world to the effects of power in Congress.

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Strenuous mental exercise like reading difficult books, solving tricky math problems — or, maybe, playing the right video game — can help keep a healthy brain sharp, research suggests.

Multitasking After 60: Video Game Boosts Focus, Mental Agility

5:22pm September 10, 2013

by Jon Hamilton

The aging brain may be more flexible than we thought, a study of older adults now suggests. After playing a racing car video game an hour a day, thrice weekly for a month, adults age 60 and over were better at multitasking than untrained 20-year-olds.

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A screenshot shows game designer Mike Mika's Donkey Kong: Pauline Edition he created for his daughter show she could play as a female hero.

Dad's 'Donkey Kong' Hack Recasts Female As Hero For Daughter

6:42pm March 12, 2013

by Steve Mullis

In an industry full of damsels in distress, game designer Mike Mika hacked the classic game to let his 3-year-old play as the female hero. His story is becoming part of a larger conversation about gender roles in the video game industry. But Mika says he didn't set out to push a feminist agenda or statement.

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