The review of the empirical literature on simulation gaming categorizes positive, negative, and contradictory aspects of gaming as an educational tool as revealed by the research. The review, which concentrates on simulation games for elementary and secondary school students, is presented in seven sections. Section I presents a brief history of gaming. Section II assesses data in recent gaming literature on learning versus interest in role playing. The importance of background knowledge and abilities that students bring to games is discussed in section III, followed by identification of the problems and positive aspects of role playing in sections IV and V. Problem areas include lack of role involvement, boredom, and the similarity of all simulation games. Positive aspects include the changed role of the teacher, the socialization process that occurs during the game, and the ability of games to teach complex problems in the classroom. Section IV discusses computerized games, the contribution of computers to gaming, and the increased sense of efficacy experienced by students using computerized games. The last section summarizes the literature on gaming by listing the positive aspects of gaming, the major drawbacks, and the benefits which result from the new computerized games of strategy. References are included. (Author/DB)