Microsoft and Sabi collaborate to produce a game that promotes learning and inspiring creativity for kids ages 4 and up. The game which is called as ItzaBitza, provides a unique and creative experience for children by allowing children to draw and bring their drawings to life. ItzaBitza was developed for three years under the Microsoft’s Advanced Strategies unit, before being spun out earlier this year by Microsoft’s IP (Intellectual Property) Ventures program into Sabi.
The following is an excerpt from CEO of Sabi & co-founder Margaret Johnson’s remarks about ItzaBitza which is extracted from the official press release of Microsoft:
We were inspired by the ‘Harold and the Purple Crayon’ stories. But “ItzaBitza” is more than an open drawing tool. Children are challenged to read increasingly advanced sentences to figure out what their on-screen character needs, then draw the object with their mouse. The images kids draw spring to life as on-screen animations that they can interact with and serve as the basis for quest-style guided-learning scenarios in which they’re prompted to perform progressively more difficult tasks.
After mastering one level, kids proceed to a more advanced one. In its first release, “ItzaBitza” features themed scenarios or “playsets” that offer kids the opportunity to go on a camping expedition, explore a haunted house, play with rocket ships in outer space or be a farmer, among other virtual adventures. For Bransford, the effect is nothing less than “magically engaging, with an emphasis on important skills.
This new educational game from Sabi and Microsoft is definitely a good news for parents like us who wish to expose our children to an educational interactive game that encourages the child to read. I hope that the government provide an access to this kind of edutainment system to children in public schools in the country so that the children experience a new method of learning while enjoying through this system. It will cost them about $20 per PC but I guess Microsoft will give a certain discount for 3rd world countries like ours. 🙂
Sabi, Inc. was founded in 2008 to provide powerful new gaming experiences that focus on creativity and interactive learning. Future games from Sabi will continue to focus on the player’s creative expression through the use of ground-breaking technology.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.