FableVision and Pearson Team up to Develop Virtual Island on Poptropica Kids Game...

FableVision and Pearson Team up to Develop Virtual Island on Poptropica Kids Game...
Tue Sep 9, 2008 6:00am EDT 

BOSTON, Sept. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Boston-based educational media developer
FableVision and Pearson, the world's largest integrated education company,
announced today that they are collaborating to create a new "island" on
Poptropica, an online environment with a rapidly expanding user base that
already includes more than 20 million young Internet users. Developed by
Family Education Network, a business of Pearson and the developer of
Funbrain.com, Poptropica is a virtual world where kids can travel, play games,
read digital books and comics, and compete with other players. Players can
also safely interact and communicate with other inhabitants of Poptropica.
    Creative development for FableVision's game island will be led by "New
York Times" bestselling children's book author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds,
FableVision's founder and executive creative director, whose works include
"Judy Moody," "Someday," "The Dot" and "Ish."
    "The key to Poptropica's success is its ever-expanding content that has
just the right mix of education and irresistible fun, and no one delivers that
better than FableVision," says Jess M. Brallier, publisher, Family Education
Network, developer of Poptropica.
    Family Education Network is no stranger to developing games that are fun
and educationally valid, much to the delight of parents, teachers and kids.
"Poptropica and its sister site, Funbrain.com, ... are the titans of sneaky
learning," says "The Gainesville Sun."
    In Poptropica, kids can play games, undertake quests, develop computer
skills, and learn much more about the world in which they live. When they
encounter other characters, they can interact by using scripted chat, never
sharing any personal or identifying information. The number of kids exploring
the virtual world of Poptropica has exploded since its launch in September
2007. The current collection of five islands will grow to 10 by the end of
2008, providing even more territory for kids to explore.
    The new FableVision island merges Poptropica's exploratory game play with
a storyline that promotes creative expression. Under Reynolds' creative
direction, the game's story features a virtual artist colony where a
disgruntled inventor is removing all color and creativity from the island and
kids come to the rescue to reverse the colorless chaos.
    Reynolds shares, "My hope is to bring the sensibilities of great
children's books to the kids' gaming world, where there seems to be a very big
void. The industry is in its infancy at the moment and needs creative
leadership to bring integrity and creative authorship to this platform."
    FableVision's director of production and technology Gary Goldberger will
help make that vision a reality. Goldberger also serves as New England
regional leader for Games4Change, the nonprofit that promotes digital games
for social change. He notes, "What makes FableVision's games special is our
ability to weave a redeeming message into the story-based game play - using
games to promote the value of creativity and invention."
    The development of the Poptropica island represents the latest evolution
of a long-standing FableVision/Pearson relationship, which has produced a
string of digital publishing successes. FableVision previously collaborated
with Pearson and Jess M. Brallier on "Tess's Tree," an online book written by
Brallier and illustrated by FableVision's Reynolds. The popularity of "Tess's
Tree" on Funbrain - garnering 50,000 to 100,000 reads a day - led to a print
publishing deal with Harper Collins; the book will hit the market next year.
    A second digital book written and illustrated by Reynolds, "Eyebrow
Story," is also on Funbrain. "Eyebrow Story" has already received more than a
million reads. Pearson and FableVision also collaborated to create Gallery
Builder, a software program that lets students create and curate their own art
galleries. The program is used throughout the United States in K-12 arts and
language arts curricula.
    Reynolds shares, "We are honored to collaborate with such a trusted name
in family-friendly education on an endeavor that is so near and dear to
FableVision's own mission."
    The island created by FableVision will launch on Poptropica in the fall of
2008.
    About Poptropica
    Developed by Family Education Network, the makers of Funbrain, Poptropica
(www.Poptropica.com) is a virtual world where kids can travel, play games,
collect objects and compete with other players in head-to-head competition.
Players can also safely interact and communicate with other inhabitants of
Poptropica. There are always new areas to explore in this ever-expanding
world, and players can read digital books and comics and watch movies along
the way.
    Family Education Network is part of Pearson, the world's largest
integrated education company. Pearson's other primary operations include the
Financial Times Group and the Penguin Group.
    About FableVision
    FableVision (www.fablevision.com) is on a mission to bring the world to a
better place through the creation and distribution of positive media,
storytelling and technology. Located at the Boston Children's Museum in
Boston, and with offices in Dedham, MA, Portland, OR, and London, the
FableVision team enjoys an international reputation for its unique brand of
innovative, technology-delivered storytelling and learning. Its K-12 software
product offerings are distributed internationally. These include creativity
and self-expression software, such as Animation-Ish, Stationery Studio and Get
A Clue, and a line of products for students with learning differences, autism
spectrum disorders (ASD), and other social differences, such as BrainCogs,
EssayExpress and SmartMoves.
    FableVision also creates media and interactives with key players on the
education landscape, including PBS, Maryland Public Television, MIT Education
Arcade, Sesame Workshop, Scholastic, KCET, Carnegie Hall, National Academy of
Sciences, WGBH, Random House, Simon & Schuster, Pearson, Girl Scouts of the
USA, SARRC, the Research Institute for Learning and Development, Boston
University and The Jim Henson Company.
SOURCE  Pearson

Leigh Hallisey of FableVision, +1-617-956-5701, leigh@fablevision.com; or Lisa
Wolfe of L. Wolfe Communications, +1-773-227-1049, lwolfe@lwolfe.com, for
Pearson
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