A game that lets players experience the process of software development can be an excellent way to introduce coding concepts and programming features, like loops and conditional statements. Games that can do this include Zachtronics’ Shenzhen I/O, which puts players in the shoes of dissatisfied engineers who work for a drab chip company and have to build computer chips by hand. The circuits they are asked to design get more difficult beginning with making the lights flash in a certain pattern.
The interface of the game is similar to the one found in browsers, and it teaches scripting. Another excellent example is Screeps which combines JavaScript coding with massively multiplayer online games to create self-sustaining colonies. Both games are excellent at teaching basic concepts and slowly introducing other players.
