One thing that I have noticed about successful apps, is that they inspire other companies to copy the winning formula, with the hopes of cashing in on the latest craze. As the developer of original IP, one can either be ticked off, or consider it a form of flattery. Personally, I prefer the latter. I expect to soon see a dearth of brightly colored, comical roly-poly games that are 100% game and 0% education. Let it be, the originals are always the best.

But what about the idea of a game/textbook hybrid? I’ve seen some amazing interactive science books published recently, most notably “Bobo Explores Light”.  The mechanics of this app are so good it makes me want to cry, and yet, it is not a game. I’d wager there’s actually more programming in Bobo then there is in most “gamer” game apps, so it’s not that Bobo’s creators were avoiding the work, it was simply a design choice to be extremely interactive, but not an actual video game.

As far as I can tell, Isopod breaks some new ground here. It’s as much a true gamer’s game as it is a bug geek’s textbook. The question in my mind is, will others follow this paradigm? I guess that’s up to the kids to decide, but my feeling is: Most Definitely.

We’ve been working extra hard to make sure Isopod is the best interactive entomology game of all time. So far, we feel it’s going to meet that goal, and preliminary feedback also suggests we are on to something. The real surprise though, has been the quality and quantity of expert scientific contribution. This means a lot, it’s one thing to make a great game, it’s altogether a different thing to make a great game that uses plausible, real life science as a foundation for learning. The layering of what is and is not acceptable runs deep, and many times comes up counter-intuitive. Most importantly, it must always remain FUN, as well as inspiring. We are finding the right balance. Can’t wait to show you.