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Arden: Shakespeare in a gaming environment

December 18, 2007

If you have a copy of the latest Neverwinter Nights game (yay NN!!!), you can install an Arden add-on which adds virtual worlds to your game based on Shakespearean plays.  This world was created by Dr. Edward Castronova and others who work at the University of Indiana in the Synthetic Worlds Institute.  Wouldn’t you like to be able to say you work at that institute?  :)

The characters in Arden speak the Shakespearean language they were created to speak.  Dr. Castronova admits that one thing got forgotten–the monsters and puzzles that make gaming an attractive environment.  Right now, Arden is much like Second Life–you can go there, look around, enjoy the scenery, talk to anyone else who happens to be there, but there is no objective as such.  They will be rectifying that with Arden II (yes, that’s right, Arden II). 

“Arden: Shakespeare in a gaming environment”

  1. Nicole Says:
    December 19th, 2007 at 6:44 am

    I think the title of the second is far catchier, too: London’s Burning.

    (Also, Indiana University, by the way – not University of Indiana)

  2. Sarah Houghton-Jan (LiB) Says:
    December 19th, 2007 at 9:54 am

    Ah, thank you for the university name correction. Correction made.

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