Whether it's board games or video games, children and young people actively choose to engage with narratives through games, making them a literacy learning tool that learners have picked for themselves. Games help them understand stories, branching narratives, characters, settings, and more.
At Into Film, we're passionate believers in the power of review writing to unlock and enhance young people's literacy skills, and while that focus tends to be on writing film reviews, the same value can also be found in game reviewing.
Embracing games as an art form that teaches great storytelling - alongside books and films - opens a door to literacy for those who struggle to access learning with traditional texts, while keeping everyone else engaged along the way.
Our NI Games Review resource supports learners in writing great game reviews by scaffolding review writing with helpful prompts, providing structure, and establishing facts from opinions.
And to further support review writing, a limited number of free Games Review workshops are available in Northern Ireland. To request one for your class or club, contact us at games@intofilm.org.
My P.6 class absolutely loved completing their Game Reviews. There was an increased buzz amongst the pupils when they realised they could write reviews of their favourite personal games. The pupils were thrilled to have such an opportunity.
Gary Lynch, KS2 Teacher, St Johns Primary School, Dernaflaw, Northern Ireland
PEGI Ratings
The Pan European Game Information (PEGI) system provides guidance and age classifications for video games to consumers and parents. The age rating confirms that the game is appropriate for players of a certain age, not the level of difficulty. Throughout our resources, we only reference and encourage children and young people to review games rated PEGI 12 and under.
NI Games Review Competition
Young people across Northern Ireland could be in with a chance of winning a Nintendo Switch Lite and other great prizes with our NI Games Review Competition. Download our free NI Games Review resource for further details and to access the entry form.
