Finnish game magazine Pelit invited three bright minded researchers to chat about the future of games. One of the chatters was me (1,5 hours late though -uups!) and we talked about the near future (~5 yrs) and more distant future (15 years) of gaming. The first issue of Pelit magazine was put out in 1992. At that time the world of computer and video games was very different from the current one. We can just imagine where do we go from here. What type of issues will be topical in 2022?
At least in the 90s the topics were e.g. what is a game, pc or console, girls or boys, good or bad, simulation or fantasy and public or private. Now we have learned that the definition of a game is flexible. It depends on the definer. For some it is an animated screen saver, for other it is certain structure, lenght and interaction. Game arcades have greatly disappeared (in Finland) and social home-centric gaming is ruling. In general consoles rule the world not to mention that girls have got into gaming and now it's normal to play games. Some of you may remember psygame-list that was active mid 1990s and coordinated by Pasi Hytönen. Now we have several networks, academic initiatives, national organisations and a wide range of conferences, events and happenings around the topic.
As everyone of you can see, the changes have been HUGE. It is definitely not an easy task to see what's happening in 2012. Regardless I decided to polish my crystal ball and give some ideas/opinions about the future. I believe in 2012 Sony/PS3 will still rule the gaming scene. By that time they have linked mobile dimension to the experience. Not PSP-type of a device but something closer to iPhone. Networking is essential in gaming -- in spatial, mobile, console and pc-gaming. Mobile advergames and infogames add nice twists to urban environments. Museums, science parks and advertisers bring the (virtual) communities back to the real world to certain central locations. Users will be co-developers of the games and add own quests and experiences to a platform/world provided by the game developers. Innovative game solutions and content from India and China will finally hit the market and do so-so. What else? You tell me :)
To get inspired, check some famous predictions orLong Bets web site. Please be entertained!
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2 comments:
not realy related but since you mentioned the iPhone...Interesting Feature Comparison between the iPhone OS and Windows Mobile 5
iPhone - Already an Outdated Technology????
Microsoft is awesome haha! Thanks for the comments and the fantastic link. I agree with you that iPhone (or iPod) is not technically the most advanced, reliable... But it has been a huge success. So how important the technology is versus design? Is it more important to have super cool device which will do the trick somewhat or technically most advanced hi-tech gear? I would prefer the easy to use and cool device with great image instead of Microsoft (=boring). Microsoft has also been on the move lately and doing really interesting things -- so who knows...
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