Library Instruction and Gaming

One of the many listserves I'm on is DIGREF, for librarians who provide digital reference services in a variety of formats. This morning I read a message about the value of gaming. The message author professed his/her mixed opinions on the utility and educational value of gaming. Here's a link to an article cited by the author that challenges the intellectual and educational merits of gaming and role playing environments:
http://www.lrb.co.uk/v29/n03/disk01_.html

This is an issue that I feel strongly about. Even games that aren't "educational" have been proven to increase creative thinking and problem solving. I think librarians and educators should be utilizing games and gaming rather than writing them off as an idle waste of time.

The American Library Association and many libraries and library organization are supporting the utility of virtual environments and realizing that they're gaining popularity. ALA has a "library" in SL, as do many public libraries and some academic libraries.

The DIGREF message pertains mostly to libraries promoting games and making them available for users. Many public libraries are reaching teens by hosting "game nights" where users can play games and talk about games. There are a variety of articles about this, but that's not where I want to focus.

While that is an interesting marketing/outreach tool, especially for public libraries, my interest lies in educational games and simulations. There are some libraries who are making tutorials increasingly interactive, but very few if any are producing high quality games for library instruction. I would like to see libraries create interesting, interactive, game-like tutorials. I'm practicing with a free version of RPG maker myself and after some practice, I'll try my hand a making a fun game incorporating IL concepts.

Any thoughts on gaming and virtual realities?