Look Into The Crystal Ball Feature - your thoughts

[charlesr]

Where do you think the future will take gaming? Please use this thread to discuss your thoughts prompted by the Into The Crystal Ball feature.

If you wish to give feedback on the article, please PM Daniel Sinfield or email [email protected]

[Brats]

Nice article and well written.

The future of games? Well I think downloadable games will become much more the norm. There will still be normal distribution methods, but digital distribution will take a considerable chunk of the market.

I think we'll start to see more and more middleware solutions so that developers writing their own engine from scratch will become rare.

Online gaming will become mainstream, but not at the expense of offline gaming. We'll see more games blurring the lines between the two so than can be enjoyed either way.

I think that digital distribution will bring more games with episodic content, simlar to the shareware idea of games like Doom. You pay a small amount for the start of the game then pay more as you need it.

One thing, I don't think games will (or are) getting more expensive. Taking into account inflation, I believe console games are cheaper now than ever.

[Sony Fanboy]

Yeah, nowadays younger people, even on a minimum wage, can afford the latest game on a day's salary. That wasn't the case 15 years ago.

[Commander Marklar]

I see a gaming industry dominated by mini games and puzzles, played through a single electronic thing in the room. I'm not so sure consoles can keep going in the way they have and as the growing form of entertainment seems to be the mobile phone gaming style of thing, it'll all be MSN-style freebie puzzles and stuff played through a set to box. Kind of like an extension to Microsoft's idea behind the 360 or Nintendo's Virtual gaming thing they want to do. Only more dominant, less a separate bit of hardware and more something that something just does.

Maybe

[Kotatsu Neko]

I think within 10 years the video game store as we know it today will be gone. Consoles will be bought from large electronics chains and online, and they will not have an optical drive. Content will be distributed exclusively online.

However I doubt we will see much convergiance. There will never be a single standard like DVD as the big players will always want to dominate and not share. So no combined 360/cable TV/PVR type affairs either.

As for games I think we'll continue to see a split as we have now, but even more so. On one side will be Nintendo, portable device makers (iPods, phones etc), and set top boxes - these guys will offer simple, pick up and play games. And on the other MS and Sony pumping out FPS and racing game sequels endlessly. I think a market split of 50% to each side is not impossible.

[TheForce]

in 10 years........... I think games will look even better then they do now...




ok... apart from the obvious, if philips 3D TV becomes affordable we'll be getting more in that direction I think.

[Leon Retro]

in 10 years........... I think games will look even better then they do now...

Certain genre's will look more realistic( better! ), maybe photo-realistic.

I reckon gaming will become more multi-player based, and story based experiences will become less popular. With online in all homes, and cheap, people will enjoy online competitive gaming more than anything. Competition is gaming at it's purest, and this facet of videogaming will dominate.

[muse hunter]

thanks for the feedback, hope you enjoyed the article

[nick_the_judge]

Since the release of the 360 and its live content, i've been wondering how long it will be before you can bet with real money on the outcome of games. Such as street fighter or pro evo not that i am a betting man, but i would imagine it would be extremley profitable. Imagine playing pro evo on live for money and such would be highly addictive, trying to win back your money after a loss or perhaps double or nothing. Also it would bring a new breed of gamer into the equation which means money for everyone involved.

[mid]

Both HD-DVD and BluRay contain enough oomph in their interactive layer to play games of the sort you see on Sky and so on. I think Marklar is right that this sort of thing will spread to whatever else ends up under our TVs. Since they've all got processors in them to do their day job, and pretty much whatever you do with HD resolutions is going to require a bit of beef, this is bound to continue, really.

So while Microsoft and Sony may continue to sell hugely expensive boxes capable of millions of polys to the few, non-dedicated machines are going to be "good enough" for most people.

[Sony Fanboy]

I think mobile phone gaming is where the biggest growth and popularity will continue to be.

[Dirty Sanchez]

All the fanciful dreams of different ways to control games is just that, fanciful. Nothing beats the dexterity of your hands/fingers, apart from the ability of your eyes. Eye trackers are not for the home envrionment so it's back to the good old pad. I can see the pad change to be more fitted, perhaps with some functions like a glove.

Prices of games has been dropping in real terms for years, the sheer volume makes up for the difference. Games are getting much more expensive to produce, I expect many many more series and chapters to be produced. Get a winning formula and milk it.

Distribution has got to go broadband, having a two way feed the piracy element can be much more controlled and a revenue stream built on use rather than purchase. Plenty of evidence that this is possible.

Integration of games into other mediums is a possibility, being able to play mini games and control elements of the games you are playing away from your home.

[angelx]

All the fanciful dreams of different ways to control games is just that, fanciful. Nothing beats the dexterity of your hands/fingers, apart from the ability of your eyes. Eye trackers are not for the home envrionment so it's back to the good old pad. I can see the pad change to be more fitted, perhaps with some functions like a glove.

Prices of games has been dropping in real terms for years, the sheer volume makes up for the difference. Games are getting much more expensive to produce, I expect many many more series and chapters to be produced. Get a winning formula and milk it.

Distribution has got to go broadband, having a two way feed the piracy element can be much more controlled and a revenue stream built on use rather than purchase. Plenty of evidence that this is possible.

Integration of games into other mediums is a possibility, being able to play mini games and control elements of the games you are playing away from your home.

littlecough* vmu... *littlecough

[Dirty Sanchez]

VMU, great. But it's not integrated as in online. A mobile phone extension to your game, a PC java plugin, features on your GPS in your car etc etc