Video Gaming

Non-Gamers Should Care About Gaming

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Venture Beat had an unusual article on why non-gamers should care about gaming. It’s a pretty interesting read, but what’s really interesting to me is the very idea itself.

As a gamer, I take the existence of my hobby and its industry for granted. I also assume, rather ignorantly, that there’s a certain barrier between me and non-gamers, even if it’s changing. That’s a given, a cultural assumption.

Of course as the article notes, it’s not true. Gamification, causal games, more games, etc. really do blur (and destroy) the gamer/non-gamer boundary. This boundary breaching is probably happening faster than many crusty old gamers like me may realize because of casual, mobile, and geek being chic.

So now that I’m actually thinking outside of the shrink-wrapped box, what do I see coming up in the gaming/non-gaming boundary:

  • Goodbye to boundary in the next 5-10 years. The only reason not to game will be because you don’t have access to the technology or the time. But gaming will be very omnipresent.
  • Design meltdown. Once gaming is so widespread, with more audiences than it’s used to, designing games is going to be more challenging. What demographics will game designers run into that they never encountered before?
  • Getting more businesslike. Gaming has had many a moment of not-exactly-professionalism. When it’s more widespread, that’s going to have to change. Expectations for businesses, of performance, of support, will alter.

What does it mean for future and current gaming professions:

  • If you’re not thinking out of the box you’re not moving ahead. Get ready to embrace a less bounded game world.
  • Act professional. It’ll make sure you survive and it’ll be expected.
  • Stop making the same damn game. Your audience has changed.

– Steven Savage

An RPG/Series Mix?

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An interesting Facebook game that’s a kind of modular RPG that’s story focused.

An intriguing idea, mostly because it takes things we’ve seen before (RPGs, modularity, social media, etc.) but actually involves more a realization of what can be done to create a tighter media experience.  There’s a Kickstarter involved, so you know what do to.

There’s so many fascinating unusual game projects out there I think we almost need a catalogue fo them all.  That’s a hint by the way.

– Steven Savage

Flight Control Rocket: Taking New Payments WAY to far?

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I have to say, it sounds like it.  It sounds like they’re monetizing the crap out of the game, and not in a good way, but in the “pay for anything, including a high score way.”

I’ve only just heard about this, but my first impressions are the game is a bit of an experiment/overindulgence in the free-to-play/more-you-pay strategy that’s way, way out of hand.  I’m not surprised – some people are going to take advantage of the model.  I’m concerned about how this plays in modern media.

Of course we know that even if this “isn’t it,” some egregious, bizarre variant of the Freemimum/Pay-to-play monetization model(s) is coming.  That variant will be so annoying, it will get a lot of publicity.  At that point, predictably, many will question the model.

The model in question is just that – a model.  How you use it is the real question, but I’m suspicious in the world of freemium and other different monetization models, mixing up the application and the model is a risk.  In a 25/8 news cycle, things move fast, including predictions of demise of something (ask Twitter), and the brave new world of  new monetization can be called into question in an instant, leaving us to sort out the reality from the bull.

So this story doesn’t surprise me.  But I’mm waiting for the inevitable “freemium/whatever-method is evil” news fest that I feel is likely.

– Steven Savage