Robert -
Traditionally, most "AAA" games actually come with multi-language
support - especially console games. How much "language" the students
hear depends on the genre. For instance, Halo 2 Vista or Halo 3 have
excellent language options, even having specific dialog for a certain
language that's based on the region. (i.e., "a spanish version for
people in spain" vs a different "spanish version for people in
Brazil".) but it's a first person shooter. Not a lot of girls are
fans of defending the planet from a hostile alien force - and, of
course, the main language of the Halo games isn't even English - it's
"Shoot, Toss Grenade, Punch".
Another choice is "The Sims" or "Second Life" - while more playable
than a First Person Shooter, the language packs are easy to get and
most come with the games. I haven't played them in awhile, but I do
recall language selection screens.
The third issue is "Mac vs PC". I don't know what your lab is, but I
know ours would be a more limiting venture - we're all Macs. And Macs
aren't known as "gaming machines".
Last but not least, remember the hardware you're playing on. PC Games
are the reason why technology is pushed forward at such a brisk pace
- they're singularly the most taxing thing a computer can do. Video
cards, hard drive space, processors, ram, etc - most are pushed to
the brink when playing today's games. Certainly consider the
"recommended specs" before picking up a lot of copies of a game.
"Second Life" and "The Sims" aren't super taxing, but if you go with
Halo 2, that's a different story.
I hope this helps!
Jeremiah Spoon
Language Center Coordinator/Technologist
Hamilton College
315.859.4792
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