Channel 4 Commissions Ten New Web-Based Games

Channel 4 continues to court and support British indie gaming talent, announcing today that it will bring ten new web-based games online during 2011.
Previously, Channel 4 has helped to bring “soft education” titles Privates and The Curfew, amongst others, to public attention.
Read on for the full line-up, with gameplay summaries:
The End is my personal favourite, as it has the potential to create a new army of Cure-listening goth kids. Made by Preloaded, it’s a platform game that’ll challenge teenagers with a series of philosophical questions about the meaning of existence and how to cope with death.
Footfall (also by Preloaded) deals with the management of a shoe business and its related economic impact.
Somewhat more whimsical is Playniac’s International Racing Squirrels a game about managing a team of … well, the clue is in the title. I guess this teaches kids about contracts and finances. Plus the very real demands of international squirrel racing.
Vinyltopia (from ProperGames) continues with the financial management theme, giving players control over a budding record store business. Presumably this will inform them about the changing nature of marketplaces and reveal the mystical secrets of a time before mp3s.
Littleloud will be taking a darker economic trip with Sweatshop, a tower defence title about factory conditions in Mauritius (spoiler: they’re not very safe or healthy.)
Walking City is a Big Robot title centered around the ‘broken windows’ theory of urban development, which theorises that if you keep an area looking cared for it will severely reduce acts of crime and vandalism.
Yes Chef! gets all digestive and puts players in charge of serving food in a restaurant. Dish out too much unhealthy stuff and you’ll get to see your lovely customers vomiting everywhere. Thanks, Playerthree.
Zoe Mode are tackling the ever-so-tricky area of identity with Who Am I? in which players will use an avatar to track the transition from childhood through to high school.
Closet Swap (Inensu) will explore ‘upcycling’ of clothes between friends and takes a shot at cheap, disposable clothing.
Finally, Truth Specs (just a working title for now) by Somethin’ Else is a reworked version of a previous “life skills” game called Super Me. Like Who Am I? it’ll be dealing with personal identity.