| If you are interested in finding games with a medical | | | | A recent variation on the game is a Shrek version with |
| theme you can look into some exciting online games | | | | a grinning, green head. Children as young as five will |
| and some hilarious board games. There are also | | | | enjoy this game. |
| games for PC and console games to consider. | | | | Operation Games for PC |
| All of the games discussed on this page revolve | | | | Many PC games offer simulations of aspects of the |
| around operations and surgery. Many are genuinely | | | | medical world. '911 Paramedic' deals with the kind of |
| educational. Some are just for fun. Anyone of them | | | | emergency situations that an everyday event in a |
| could start a child on the route to being a fully fledged | | | | busy hospital. ER The Game takes you into the world |
| health professional. | | | | of ER, the TV show, 'Sarah's Emergency Room' is |
| Operation Board Games | | | | about first responses to patients entering a hospital. |
| Operation Game (with Cavity Sam) | | | | Console Games |
| The board game 'Operation' with Cavity Sam is a | | | | The most successful operation games for Wii and |
| game that has been around since the mid-sixties. | | | | Nintendo are from the 'Trauma Center' series and |
| It has delighted generations of kids (and many adults | | | | include titles like 'New Blood', 'Second Opinion' and |
| too) with its recreation of a trip to the operating | | | | 'Under the Knife'. The player must perform many |
| theater that rarely goes according to plan. | | | | different operations to proceed through the games. |
| The principle of the game is very simple. The player | | | | An older game-but one that can still be found- is |
| needs to use tweezers to remove various objects | | | | 'Lifesigns Surgical Unit' for Wii. |
| from the patient's body without triggering a negative | | | | Operation Games Online |
| response. The kinds of thing the player needs to | | | | There are many games online that feature the kinds |
| remove range from water on the knee to a frog in the | | | | of skills required during an operation. Some are for |
| throat. Responses usually involve shrieks of pain, | | | | younger children and are designed to develop manual |
| grumbles and pleas for mercy that are hilarious for | | | | skills, others are sophisticated introductions to real |
| kids, along with flashing lights. | | | | surgical techniques. |
| It is essentially a dexterity game that is very similar to | | | | 'Operation Mania', for example, is actually an online |
| those electrical loop games that were once so popular. | | | | version of the classic 'Operation' board game featuring |
| You might not remember electrical loop games but | | | | Cavity Sam. Children can remove things like butterflies |
| they involved the player working their way along a | | | | in the stomach of their patient with a large net. If they |
| wire with a metal hoop. If the hoop touched the wire | | | | catch the butterflies without touching the stomach |
| an alarm sounded and the player lost the game. | | | | walls they win that part of the game. |
| Since the objects that need to be removed from the | | | | 'Let's Operate' is a simple game where a player tries |
| patients body in 'Operation' are small and the cavities | | | | to follow a wandering line with a scalpel. Just as Cavity |
| they are housed in are only a little larger, it takes a | | | | Sam screeches in anguish if you are clumsy, the |
| very skillful person to win the game. | | | | patient in this game cries out if you stray from the line. |
| Nowadays, versions of the game with Homer Simpson | | | | There is a also a time element to add to the pressure. |
| as the hapless victim of fumbled surgery can also be | | | | In this case, the passing of time is represented by the |
| found. There is even a Spongebob version where you | | | | draining of a blood bag which adds a nice ghoulish |
| can operate on Spongebob's Barnacle Brain, Clammy | | | | touch. |
| Hands or Patty Pleasure Center. These games are | | | | Much more sophisticated games that give older |
| recommended for children of 8 and older. | | | | children (13+) the chance to learn about operations |
| Operation Brain Surgery | | | | involve such things as knee replacement surgery or |
| In this game, it is the ability to recognize objects by | | | | heart transplants. These games often come with a |
| touch alone that is developed. Instead of a flat board | | | | strong educational element. Some are made especially |
| with the figure of a patient, the player is confronted by | | | | for teachers to use in the classroom and have |
| a large electronic, talking head. Inside the head are | | | | supporting notes and suggested activities. The |
| various shapes. The players are dealt cards with a | | | | educational tag hasn't stopped these games being |
| shape on each. They need to reach into the head and | | | | popular with teenagers who seek them out to play |
| fish out the shapes that match their cards.If the player | | | | with or without the classroom experience. |
| is too slow or too rough the head's nose lights up, a | | | | For children showing an interest in a career in medicine, |
| buzzer sounds and the operation is declared a failure. | | | | any of the games mentioned here could help cement |
| A lot of work has gone into making this simple game | | | | their ambition. For those children who just want to |
| fun. The shapes have names like 'block head' and 'train | | | | have fun, they can still offer a rich experience. |
| of thought'. | | | | |