Transistor (https://transistor.fm) https://feeds.transistor.fm/the-history-of-learning-games-podcast Digital learning games have shaped what happens inside and outside of classrooms. They've led to some of the game industry’s most fascinating successes and failures. And they have important lessons for us about teaching and learning. Join learning game maker Brian Alspach as he covers the history of this influential videogame genre and the classic titles we've played to learn. © Phronetic Mechanics LLC b14af3fd-b244-5956-9626-750af542fe6e yes en Wed, 20 May 2026 13:57:11 -0400 Wed, 20 May 2026 13:58:10 -0400 https://historyoflearning.games https://img.transistorcdn.com/1ZxKBoUjVdLSpB-Nid8pr2o0-4Z6RlbTVQBIdmJpyyo/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:1400/h:1400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8zMWZi/NzkzMzIyY2ZkYTJl/N2NjOGFhZDQyODE5/ZTgwMy5wbmc.jpg https://historyoflearning.games episodic Brian Alspach Digital learning games have shaped what happens inside and outside of classrooms. They've led to some of the game industry’s most fascinating successes and failures. And they have important lessons for us about teaching and learning. Join learning game maker Brian Alspach as he covers the history of this influential videogame genre and the classic titles we've played to learn. Digital learning games have shaped what happens inside and outside of classrooms. learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology Phronetic Mechanics LLC holg@historyoflearning.games No No 5 5 Ep 5: The Oregon Trail full 248073aa-340b-4683-a229-4bfebf9b930e https://share.transistor.fm/s/0dea3c66 Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential video games of all time, 1971’s The Oregon Trail has educated and delighted players for over half a century. Before the game became a fixture of 1980s school computer labs—in all its black‑and‑green Apple II glory—it began its life as a student‑teaching project for a young educator and his computer‑savvy roommates. Try not to die of dysentery before you hear about the pop icon who acted as an early playtester.  Royalty free music from https://www.FesliyanStudios.com 

]]> Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential video games of all time, 1971’s The Oregon Trail has educated and delighted players for over half a century. Before the game became a fixture of 1980s school computer labs—in all its black‑and‑green Apple II glory—it began its life as a student‑teaching project for a young educator and his computer‑savvy roommates. Try not to die of dysentery before you hear about the pop icon who acted as an early playtester.  Royalty free music from https://www.FesliyanStudios.com 

]]> Mon, 08 Sep 2025 09:00:00 -0400 Brian Alspach Brian Alspach 2063 Widely considered one of the greatest and most influential video games of all time, 1971’s The Oregon Trail has educated and delighted players for over half a century. Before the game became a fixture of 1980s school computer labs—in all its black‑and‑green Apple II glory—it began its life as a student‑teaching project for a young educator and his computer‑savvy roommates. Try not to die of dysentery before you hear about the pop icon who acted as an early playtester.  Royalty free music from https://www.FesliyanStudios.com 

]]> learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology No 4 4 Ep 4: The Sumerian Game full 8e32ffe4-dced-4537-8cbb-0c16d8afc2a0 https://share.transistor.fm/s/c92086a7 1964's The Sumerian Game is recognized as the first educational videogame, but due to its numerous and often overlooked contributions to games as a whole, it's also been called "the most important videogame you've never heard of." What started as a research project is responsible for more than its share of game industry firsts, including the first game designer: a teacher who began her career in a one-room schoolhouse, Mabel Addis.

]]> 1964's The Sumerian Game is recognized as the first educational videogame, but due to its numerous and often overlooked contributions to games as a whole, it's also been called "the most important videogame you've never heard of." What started as a research project is responsible for more than its share of game industry firsts, including the first game designer: a teacher who began her career in a one-room schoolhouse, Mabel Addis.

]]> Mon, 25 Aug 2025 09:00:00 -0400 Brian Alspach Brian Alspach 2464 1964's The Sumerian Game is recognized as the first educational videogame, but due to its numerous and often overlooked contributions to games as a whole, it's also been called "the most important videogame you've never heard of." What started as a research project is responsible for more than its share of game industry firsts, including the first game designer: a teacher who began her career in a one-room schoolhouse, Mabel Addis.

]]> learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology No 3 3 Ep 3: Kriegsspiel full b7d0f1cc-fe6f-42f2-b654-b5d7ed1259e9 https://share.transistor.fm/s/ae4a7442 During the Napoleonic Wars, a German “board game geek” set out to make a tabletop wargame that accurately simulated real combat in a way that earlier games in the genre did not. His son picked up development in the 1820s, and through what we would today call an “iterative design process,” created the game of Kriegsspiel (literally “war game”). An explicitly educational game, Krieggspiel was used as a training tool for officers in the Prussian military, contributing to its dramatic victories in several late 19th Century wars and, perhaps, indirectly to some of the 20th Century’s darkest chapters. It also introduced a number of crucial game design innovations that have unlocked entire popular genres we still play today.

]]> During the Napoleonic Wars, a German “board game geek” set out to make a tabletop wargame that accurately simulated real combat in a way that earlier games in the genre did not. His son picked up development in the 1820s, and through what we would today call an “iterative design process,” created the game of Kriegsspiel (literally “war game”). An explicitly educational game, Krieggspiel was used as a training tool for officers in the Prussian military, contributing to its dramatic victories in several late 19th Century wars and, perhaps, indirectly to some of the 20th Century’s darkest chapters. It also introduced a number of crucial game design innovations that have unlocked entire popular genres we still play today.

]]> Mon, 11 Aug 2025 09:00:00 -0400 Brian Alspach Brian Alspach 1343 During the Napoleonic Wars, a German “board game geek” set out to make a tabletop wargame that accurately simulated real combat in a way that earlier games in the genre did not. His son picked up development in the 1820s, and through what we would today call an “iterative design process,” created the game of Kriegsspiel (literally “war game”). An explicitly educational game, Krieggspiel was used as a training tool for officers in the Prussian military, contributing to its dramatic victories in several late 19th Century wars and, perhaps, indirectly to some of the 20th Century’s darkest chapters. It also introduced a number of crucial game design innovations that have unlocked entire popular genres we still play today.

]]> learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology No 2 2 Ep 2: Snakes and Ladders full d8775f72-fbd4-49b3-86ef-6d7e3850fe98 https://share.transistor.fm/s/d3203146 Snakes and Ladders is familiar to Western audiences as a simple childhood game. But it has its origins in India, where it developed as an educational allegory rooted in Hindu moral philosophy. We'll break the game down and look into how all the elements of its design -- particularly its play and learning mechanics -- work together to impart the lesson it's trying to teach.

]]> Snakes and Ladders is familiar to Western audiences as a simple childhood game. But it has its origins in India, where it developed as an educational allegory rooted in Hindu moral philosophy. We'll break the game down and look into how all the elements of its design -- particularly its play and learning mechanics -- work together to impart the lesson it's trying to teach.

]]> Mon, 28 Jul 2025 21:30:05 -0400 Brian Alspach Brian Alspach 1168 Snakes and Ladders is familiar to Western audiences as a simple childhood game. But it has its origins in India, where it developed as an educational allegory rooted in Hindu moral philosophy. We'll break the game down and look into how all the elements of its design -- particularly its play and learning mechanics -- work together to impart the lesson it's trying to teach.

]]> learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology No 1 1 Ep 1: Introduction & a Nickel Tour of the History of Games full 8e58ca90-ced1-4de2-b45e-91107a7cc15e https://share.transistor.fm/s/6b132f0c Brian introduces the series with info on his background, then outlines the podcast's mission: providing an historical overview of digital learning games. Then, we're off on a "nickel tour" of the history of games going back to antiquity, all the way through the early days of videogames, to provide the backdrop for what's to come.

]]> Brian introduces the series with info on his background, then outlines the podcast's mission: providing an historical overview of digital learning games. Then, we're off on a "nickel tour" of the history of games going back to antiquity, all the way through the early days of videogames, to provide the backdrop for what's to come.

]]> Sun, 27 Jul 2025 16:40:10 -0400 Brian Alspach Brian Alspach 2436 Brian introduces the series with info on his background, then outlines the podcast's mission: providing an historical overview of digital learning games. Then, we're off on a "nickel tour" of the history of games going back to antiquity, all the way through the early days of videogames, to provide the backdrop for what's to come.

]]> learning games, educational games, video games, videogames, games for impact, games for change, game design, learning design, technology No