Quick post to highlight some news from Roibeárd Mac Unfraidh about a new Irish language computer games’ site, Clé Clic, which features several games as Gaeilge including An Aimsir Óg. Early days and all that. I would love to see an Irish videogame review and general geekery site and Clé Clic would be great name for it. Kudos to Roibeárd! 😉
Meanwhile an update on An Caife Craosach from Irish games’ maker Black Market Games (which I featured here). They now have a new website dedicated to the game which looks great.
AN SIONNACH FIONN 
Sionnach: unfortunately as important as learning through play is undeniable, I’d suggest that electronic gaming has no more intrinsic value than traditional board games — whatever you might think about that, let me suggest two truths irrespective of importance attached to coding/ programming at early age education: the cost of living in this state is increasing every year contributing to a ‘digital divide’ between the monied classes (including the Irish language bourgeoisie) and secondly the cost of labour/ Irish business-venture capitalists’ obsession with priotising profit over public good – the latter having concentrated ‘outsourcing’ of manufacturing and printing to lands well beyond the reach of Irish unemployed — unfortunately we will have to look as usual elsewhere for guidance, where perhaps even basic literature and not just manufacturing jobs will be non-existant in favour of the all important fdi/service industry — Peadar ./- http://url.ie/hkrn – http://url.ie/hkrp
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I agree that both methods are important for the acquisition of language (and social) skills. I welcome any Irish language videogames partly because I am/was a gamer (working in IT tends to kill your passion) and because anything that helps promote/disseminate the language to the next generation is a good thing.
I should also add that I like to support Irish enterprises where possible (a concept our government and state seems wilfully blind to in the pursuit of the great god of FDI). Even Richard Branson had to start somewhere 😉
On out-sourcing don’t get me started. I see it every day both in materials and labour.
The worse phrase in Irish politics is “Ireland Inc.”. I absolutely loathe it and those who use it. My nation is a community of communities not a bloody company or a business, and Michael O’Leary and the like are not the “natural” leaders of our nation. They are businesspeople not politicians. The 25% of the voting population who seem to want to “Ryanair” our country hold my contempt.
Sorry, rant over 🙂
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Not at all – that was no rant! You’re spot on — I only hope your excellent blog reaches the wider Irish speaking diaspora who graduated with higher degrees at the public expense during the debt-bubble and decide to invest jobs in Ireland (irrespective of the workers’ background) and support Irish medium games and educational products/ initiatives — my main worry is that price but more likely inherited prejudice will mean Irish consumers just won’t support them: can I also suggest that one principal reason why the Gaelscéal paper irrespective of the politics (and Foinse is on 3 month holiday) is because Irish speakers aren’t willing in the majority to support same initiatives by putting principal ahead of finance – generalisation perhaps! Beir bua, Peadar
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Good point about the economic commitment of Irish-speakers to their own language/culture/identity (which was indeed made in relation to Gaelscéal following its closure). However that must be set against the very high cost of Irish language publications of any sort, even with supposed subsidies in place. State-support is often more to the benefit of the media makers than the media consumers, with books and software in particular selling for quite exorbitant prices despite the fact that they should in theory be undercutting English language media.
I note that Israel offers free Hebrew classes to all immigrants and that the new PQ government in Québec is proposing something similar there, with the added proviso of including anglophone natives in the province. I believe that free Irish language classes for all adult citizens (with materials supplied) and regulated through a central body could have a significant impact on the use of the language. Such initiatives could be further pushed through FÁS and suchlike.
I tend to believe that the economic clout of the Irish-speaking community as a whole is far smaller than some would think (or wish). Affluent Gaels remain a minority within a minority.
That said despite my lack of any fluency in the language I have made several donations to Irish language causes. I’m sure many other anglophone Irish people with little to no knowledge of the language would be sympathetic too. The problem is everyone believes the myth of a billion euros a year “wasted” on Irish and think the community/sector is awash with money. Unfortunately the opposite is true.
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Thanks very much for that earlier, Sionnach — I don’t know; I’m no neo-liberal but wouldn’t either be happy to see more party political apparatchiks or opportunists generally fleece the system: the language needs to support itself through collective altruism – language rights protected in law but supported by people themselves – we’ll have to see – personally I think we’re screwed as most are still in denial five years into this disaster – url.ie/hlbv – here’s hoping for some of Iain Banks’ optimism – url.ie/hlbt
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