A strange little side quest
The next time Caroline Goes To School asks for one more try, remember that game ideas rarely appear from nowhere. The Oregon Trail began in 1971 when three student teachers created a computer simulation to help Minnesota schoolchildren learn American history. The same trail leads to another fact: Barbie Fashion Designer became a major software hit in 1996, selling more than 500,000 copies in two months and proving there was a large audience for fashion-focused computer play. It is a good reminder that simple game mechanics can carry a surprising amount of history.
