YoYo Games hosts hundreds of relatively simple online games created by amateur and professional game developers. That’s not why I’m pointing it out to you. I’m pointing it out because YoYo Games offers a free (for PC) game development tool called Game Maker 8. Game Maker 8 enables users to develop simple video games using a drag and drop editor. Game Maker 8 gives users the ability to customize backgrounds and actions throughout their games. For the first-time user YoYo Games offers a series of free Game Maker 8 tutorials.

Game Maker 8 is available in three versions; Lite which is free for Windows users, Pro which unlocks advanced features for $25, and a Mac version which costs $25. The Mac version can be tried for free for up to ten hours before a payment is required. 

Game Maker 8 could be a good tool for students to use to try to develop educational games. After a unit of study instead of having kids give a presentation have them try to develop a game which demonstrates what they’ve learned. Perhaps they could develop a game based on a set of mathematics concepts or a game based on a set of historical events.