This chapter presents a review of distance learning literature the purposes, advantages, disadvantages, and types of distance learning and a detailed comparison of web‐based distance learning tools in education. Research on distance education has been subject to long and numerous debates. Distance education needs a reliable means of communication between students and lecturers. Therefore, the history of distance education begins at the point where a reliable communication method is established. Most historians date distance education to the eighteenth century, when a few lecturers began to offer what were called correspondence courses. One of the first examples of distance education was observed in 1728, when “an advertisement in the Boston Gazette named ‘Caleb Phillips’, teacher of the new method of Short Hand” was searching students for lessons to be sent weekly. When I heard that Yak & Co, the developers of Agent A, had released a new game, I was eager to check it out.But technology‐based distance education started after the introduction of some devices, which are using both sight and sound, into the schools in the early 1900s. Agent A had been a pleasant surprise, packed with attractive set pieces inspired by Connery-era James Bond and brain-tickling puzzles that were equal parts tactile and engaging. I’d gone into it with uncertain expectations yet come away impressed. This, of course, meant that I had certain expectations of Down in Bermuda. So when I fired it up I was disappointed to find that the spy trappings of Agent A were long gone in their place was a style that more closely resembled Monument Valley. While Monument Valley and its sequel are fine games in and of themselves, they spawned a subgenre of puzzlers that quickly became uncomfortably crowded. Lacking the uniqueness of its forebearer, Down in Bermuda struggled to leave me with a strong impression. The protagonist of Down in Bermuda is Milton, a pilot who 30 years ago crash landed on a tiny island that in no way resembles the real Bermuda. (I suppose Down in the Bermuda Triangle would’ve been too much of a mouthful.) Having lost his middle years to the island, he one day decides to make his way back to civilization, where he hopes to reunite with his wife and child. Why did he wait three decades to get off his plump rump and find a way home? Bermuda must be a nice place to spend a decade or three. You guide Milton from island to island, solving puzzles and collecting magic orbs to open portals. On these tropical isles you’ll encounter a wide cast of creatures, including giant turtles, a bony pirate, and a friendly duck. Some of these island denizens will lend you a hand, while others will impede your progress. The bare-bones story is paired with a clean visual style. Like Agent A before it, Down in Bermuda nixes textured surfaces in favor of pure colors and gradients. The resulting style plays nicely with the tropical locale, with each island having a unique theme and color palette. The soundtrack is also on point, full of jaunty tunes that reinforce the laid-back atmosphere. Gameplay is a mix of Monument Valley-style puzzles and hunting for hidden objects. This aspect is where the shift from the mostly static 2D scenes of Agent A to full 3D has hurt the game the most.
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