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School aged children spend more time with electronic media than ever before due to the introduction of digital games in the middle of the 1980s. In 2009, 60% of children aged 8 to 18 played video games on a normal day, up from 52% in 2004 and 38% in 1999 due to a rise in the popularity of digital games (Rideout, Foerh, & Roberts, 2010). There has been more discussion regarding the potential of digital games for language learning as they become more realistic and interactive (Ranali, 2008). Much of the discussion has focused on their ability to provide engaging contexts in order to provide virtual worlds rich in opportunities for linguistic exposure and communicative practice (Ranali, 2008).
Digital games have been found in several recent studies to improve students' learning to enhance students' learning in a variety of disciplines, including language, art, maths, sciences, history, etc. In order to mention a few, Steinkuehler (2011) asserted that digital games seem to be a solution to the problem of teenage boys and reading rather than a cause of it. Reading is an important element of participation in digital game culture. Consequently, digital games and print discourses are not in competition with each other, but rather two essential, complementary elements of today's youth media ecosystem.
Karakoc et al. (2020) found that digital game-based learning has a positive impact on students' learning. A meta-analysis study conducted by Chen et al. (2018) investigated the efficacy of digital game-based vocabulary acquisition. Participants' vocabulary acquisition increased as a result of the data. According to McCarthy et al. (2018), students' early mathematics learning is impacted by digital games. Pre and post assessment results showed an increase in students' mathematical skills and comprehension. Chen et al. (2020) found that low and medium achievers learn chemical topics with significantly more confidence, satisfaction, and less frustration than their control group peers.
With so many students, researchers and teachers immersed in digital gaming, we try to examine the correlation between digital game and first language (L1) learning outcomes. According to the literature the vast majority of existing research focus on second/foreign language (L2) learning (Marlatt et al., 2021; Wu et al., 2020; Bolliger et al., 2015; Hung et al., 2018; Tsai & Tsai, 2018). Compared to the number of studies that focus on the use and exploitation of digital games for second/foreign language (L2) learning, the studies that explore first language (L1) learning with digital games are significantly fewer. According to Hung et al. (2018), who conducted a literature review on the use of games in language learning, out of a total of 42 relevant studies, only 6 (4%) were related to first language learning, while 36 (percentage 94%) were related to second/foreign language learning. This conclusion may be explained by the phenomenon of English as an international language in a more globally globalised world, which motivates speakers of different first languages to develop their English communication abilities. Another potential is that since most of the best-selling commercial games are offered in English, English teachers can modify these games to be used in the classroom. On the other hand, the lack of availability of L2 games for less commonly used languages creates new possibilities for DGBLL study in the future. On the other hand, the lack of research on the use of games in the first language may be due to the complexity of language teaching (writing, speaking, reading, spelling, dictation, grammar, vocabulary, text production, text comprehension, text summarization, etc.). Therefore, it becomes extremely difficult for game developers to design and develop games suitable for teaching language phenomena.