Need help choosing games for a Psych Experiment

[pumbaa]

Hey guys... I need to do a research proposal for my psych. class and I'm planning it on doing it on the positive effects of puzzle like videogames.

The setup would ideally be have two groups of same aged kids (perhaps in the same class) and give one group a selection of games to play and the other one none. I need the games to be mentally stimulating... so I'm thinking about the obvious puzzle game genre... but I wonder if I can expand past that. I'm thinking things like Ico and Zelda maybe helpful (lots of environmental puzzles...) maybe Prince of Persia (the first one...)

I'm planning on comparing academic acheivement for the videogaming and non-videogaming groups. I think the main thing that matters is that these games be as non-violent as possible. You'd be amazed at how much research out there links the words "violent" and "videogame" together like ALL videogames are violent (when a majority aren't).

So help me out and list some games that might be feasible for the study.

[javeryh]

Tetris?

[Dr Mario Kart]

You're gonna have to go with real intuitive easy to pick up stuff. Donkey Konga that bitch!

I participated in this experiment here at UT. This guy was had two groups, gamers and non gamers, do this exercise on a computer where there is this indoor map/maze type thing. And you have to wander it, and then after a certain amount of time and/or finding all these waypoints, you had to re-draw the place from memory. And if you made one mistake, they made you wander around again.

First thing I did was go around the perimeter and just looking down the hallways.

So in the end, he said gamers do way way better and have a more...systematic way of doing it. My time was so short that he actually added 30 minutes to it so it wouldnt be suspicious, which probably isnt very scientifically moral.

[Nirvanaguy777]

Lumines is supposed to be amazing, aside from that since I dunno if he has a psp or not id recommend tetris or bust a move.

[video_gamer324]

Just some food for thought, Sphinx and Pikmin both have plenty of environmental puzzles.

[Dr Mario Kart]

It cant be too hard though. It'll be harder to find a 'gaming effect' if some of your people end up not understanding the game.

[GiantPacu]

Give them Lumines and watch the gamer group's grades drop. Other than that how about SimCity or something? Those games certainly make you think.

[Rig]

Tetris?

Or Bubble Bobble/Bust a Move? Dr. Mario? Puyo Pop? DDR?

I'd stick with games that anyone can pick up and understand...

[jaso]

The Adventures of Lolo would be a great brain-stimulating puzzle game. You'd probably have to get a computer-based Nintendo emulator like Nesticle to make it work, but it shouldn't be too hard to find one and roms of the Lolo games. Of course, you could always go the manual route and get a Nintendo deck and the game itself.

The best new-school puzzle games are your standard Tetris-inspired games, but you might also be interested to use a Myst game on the Xbox.

[eldad9]

You'd be amazed at how much research out there links the words "violent" and "videogame" together like ALL videogames are violent (when a majority aren't).

Yeah, just do a search on that very violent game called "resident of evil creek".

[danny90044]

The Adventures of Lolo would be a great brain-stimulating puzzle game.

thats what that bubly motherfucker was called...thx

[m0rningbreakfast]

That Puzzle Fighter game - not the super deformed actual fighting game with Capcom characters, but the one that featured gems and strategy.

[Ozzkev55]

Use Super Collapse II
and
that game like bust a groove, forgot the name

[GuilewasNK]

Minesweeper! It's on almost every PC an it makes you think a lot.

Oregon Trail would be great provided you could find a copy. I remember playing that in elementary school way back in the mid-80's. It was gret for teching decision making.