More than 7,000 pupils in 25 countries are learning with Classcraft, a platform that turns classrooms into MMORPGs. With the average young person in the US spending at least 10,000 hours playing online games by the age of 21, it seems like a logical move for education. But does gamification work for everyone?

The advent of social gaming has opened up the male-dominated gaming landscape. Female gamers - previously largely ignored by the industry - are now part of the valuable casual games demographic. But is this all they are, asks Debbi Evans.

In a not-so-distant future, Aiden Pearce strolls the streets of Chicago. Pulling a smartphone from the pocket of his inconspicuous trench coat, he hacks the nearest ATM and steals someone else's cash. For those who know what they're doing, a connected city is just waiting to be exploited.

"Rule the red carpet!" "Take over LA!" "Date and dump celebrities!" These activities form the narrative of Kim Kardashian's smartphone gameKim Kardashian: Hollywood. It's part of an emerging genre of adventure gaming where no skill or attention is required in order to succeed.

As the limitations and conventions of genre dissolve,That Dragon, Canceris part of a fresh approach to gaming that recognises real empathy can only be felt through genuine experience – winning over an involved and profoundly committed audience.

As the web reshapes content creation and distribution, Machinima – 'MTV for gaming' – has become one of YouTube's biggest success stories, and is now securing two billion video views each month, alongside Hollywood talent and big brand partnerships.

As internet-connected video devices become more widely available, there's a growing trend for live-streamed gaming. Platforms like Twitch are creating peer-controlled channels brimming with engaging user-generated content.

The avatars people choose in video games can affect how they behave toward others in the real world, a study has found. Just a few minutes playing hero or villain in a virtual game caused people to either reward or punish real anonymous strangers.