Learning is a chore. Literally, it’s the first thing many of us encounter that we are told we have to do in spite of the fact we don’t want to. We know it's important for us to learn about things like math, history, or science. That doesn’t always mean it's fun, especially for kids. For children of the ‘90s, video games were the reward after a long day of learning. Educational games did exist but most were so god awful they never graced store shelves. So it was a revelation 40 years ago when an educational video game – bundled with a book! – became a bona fide phenomenon and one of the most beloved games of a generation.
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? launched for PC on April 23, 1985. The central premise was simple. Track down the elusive thief Carmen Sandiego by apprehending different members of her gang who have a predilection for stealing famous artifacts and, somehow, even landmarks. Players would be given clues that came straight out of social studies class. They weren’t always obvious and would sometimes require the use of an accompanying World Almanac, a genuine school book you’d normally never associate with something as cool as video games. Yet 40 years, 17 games and four TV series later, the legacy of the greatest educational game of all-time lives on.
