Pax & PorkbellySup Erbody!
I have been fortunate enough in the past few days to watch a presentation given by Bing Gordon (EA's EVP/CCO) He talked about the future of games, television, the internet, movies, and how young people play a huge roll in dictating where it goes. He said that games are headed into a more customizable world. He brought up myspace, facebook, Wikipedia, Youtube, paypal, Ebay, W.O.W., blogs, avatars and everything we use, see and customize on a daily basis. Something like "turning games from things you buy, into places you go" with multitasking being a huge part of it. Video games are being added onto the long list of things you do simultaniously with the computer. He talked about the success of online gaming through X-box live, and WOW and how they offer a larger experience than just a game you sit down and play by yourself. An enviroment to "be" in where your avatar and profile are omnipresent. Apparently 60% of the web pages on the internet are made by amatuers and average people. During the presentation I had the opportunity to ask him some questions and I asked "what games could accomplish that no other creative medium could?" He told me games are resetting expectations and standards on interface, communications and feedback, among other things I didnt manage to write down he said "interactivity proves to increase emotional involvment and scoring changes behavior". I also asked him how storytelling in games changes with the player being in direct control of the narrative. He told me that unlike movies and books where the story is traditionally thought of as having a definite structure, games tell stories through "logically relinkable micro-narratives", making the experience unique everytime, and an interesting challenge to design. The talk was beautifully elightening, and pretty daunting. I found out later that day that he has a facebook account. I wont bore you with all of it. keep it real everybody!
-Tamte
