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We've collected links to games and other interactive experiences as a fun way to think about borders. Some of these look at the border in a literal way, some will take you to places and worlds for the very first time, and others will simply let you walk in someone else's shoes for awhile and explore someone else's borders. Have fun!

Disclaimer: These links have been collected for visitors to the P.O.V.'s "Borders" website. While we have screened these sites for quality and suitability, these games are maintained by others, and we are not responsible for their content.

Arcade and Adventure Games

The Maria Sisters

The Maria Sisters

Maria has just emigrated to the United States. But at the plant where she works, Maria is exposed to hazardous chemicals, an unsympathetic foreman, and other calamities. Can you help Maria make it through the work day? This game is from the Global Arcade, an organization which utilizes arcade games as a tool to generate discussion on globalization.

 

P.o.N.G.

P.o.N.G.

This update of the classic game has a global twist to it. Also from the Global Arcade and created by artists from the Banff Centre.

 

Banja

Banja

What's it like to cross into a strange new world: where no one speaks your language, the local customs seem bizarre, and the local currency is honey? Welcome to Itland.


 

Crosser image

Crosser and La Migra

Frogger-like game where you help the illegal border crosser evade the police or you try and catch the border crosser. (dowload required) La Migra™, and its companion piece Crosser™, are critical commentary in the form of a video game, conceived of as a piece of interactive digital art.

Mr. Potato

Mr. Potato

He's emigrated from Peru to Ireland and to many other parts of the world. A staple of the U.S. diet. The potato. This game from Crazy Bone.

 

el emigrante image

El Emigrante

Another border crossing game where you direct the bicycle riding immigrant away from the police cars chasing him.


Interactive Experiences

Re-Route

Re-Route

See the city of Torino, Italy through the eyes of its recent immigrants. An interactive map, photographs, and essays follow Italy's newest immigrants on their route through the city. This interactive experience by Dominic Hislop and Miklós Erhardt and sponsored by the Big Torino 2002-Biennial for Young Artists.


 

NetFlag

NetFlag

Designed for the Guggenheim museum by artists Mark Napier, the "net.flag," allows users to choose from different country flags in order to design a flag for the one region in the world with no definable borders: the internet.

 

Passenger Search

Passenger Search

If your ancestors passed through the border at Ellis Island, then you'll find them here. Learn about the ship they sailed, the town they left, and the day they arrived to America. From the American Family Immigration Center at Ellis Island.

 

Immigration Timeline

Immigration Timeline: "The Peopling of America"

From 1790 to 2002: From Europe to Africa. Find out about the "Peopling of America." Also from the Family Immigration Center at Ellis Island.


 

Tenement Virtual Tour

Tenement Virtual Tour

Many immigrants arrived to New York City only to be forced into the squalor of cramped tenements in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The New York Tenement Museum offers this virtual tour of one of these tenement buildings.

 

Name That Class

Name That Class

Take this fun quiz and learn, which social class you belong to … or want to belong to. From the PBS website for "People Like Us."


 

You Are Where You Live

You Are Where You Live

Just type in your zip code, and find out your profile. How close does it fit you?

 

Email Chess

Email Chess

Here's one way to play the classic board game across whatever borders lie between you and your opponents. This game from Shockwave.com.

 

Otsland

Otsland

Otsland is a strange place, which is one part abandoned movie theater, and one part abandoned world. This game lets you explore it for the very first time. By Short Stay Entertainment.


 


Choose Your Own Adventures

Your Decision

Your Decision

You are an officer for the INS. Before you sits a man or a woman who has just applied for political asylum in the U.S. It's your decision: do you grant their request for asylum? From P.O.V.'s "Well-Founded Fear," website.


 

Losing York Grip, A Story in Five Fits

Losing Your Grip, A Story in Five Fits

You just quit smoking through the help of a risky lab experiment. But after your treatment, you suddenly awaken in a field of mud. Now what? An interactive fiction game by Stephen Granade.

 

Ditch Day Drifter

Ditch Day Drifter

You're a freshman at a university with a very strange tradition. Once a year, the seniors lock their doors and the freshmen are forced to find ingenious ways to unlock the puzzles that will unlock the doors. An interactive fiction game written by Michael J. Roberts.

 

More Interactive Fiction Games

More Interactive Fiction Games

Ever wanted to be a little girl with a kitten named Fuzzle? Or a wizard apprentice at Castle Amnos? Or a rebellious teenager with a love of punk? Walk in someone else's shoes for a while. Choose from over twenty shoes and interactive fiction games from the Interactive Fiction Competition. 2000.


 

The Quest of Straim, Amazon

The Quest of Stralm, Amazon

"Phoebe and Leo, 12-year old twins, decide to go for a walk in the lush forest near their home. As they are casually strolling, they come to a fork in the path." Which path do they take? You choose. From St. Joseph's College eighth grade class in Brisbane, Australia.

 

 Egyptian Adventure

Egyptian Adventure

"Peter Peterson is in Egypt on an archeological dig, with his dog Tim Tam. They find a new tomb with jewels inside. Unknown to Peter, a female detective flies in from Uzbekistan to investigate. Choose Peter's fate. Also from the eighth grade class at St. Joseph's College in Bristbane, Australia.

Last Update: October 15, 2007