Small event on online gaming

[pipo]

Today...

Hopefully some sites will pick it up.

The Era of Connected Gaming - An Inside Look at an Industry on the Verge of a Revolution

Speakers:
Lars Buttler, CEO, TWN, Inc.
Laurent Detoc, President, Ubisoft North America
Peter Moore, Corporate Vice President, Interactive Entertainment Business, Entertainment & Devices Division, Microsoft Corp.
Raph Koster, Chief Creative Officer, Sony Online Entertainment

Moderator:
Vince Broady, Senior Vice President, Games & Entertainment, CNET Networks

Video and computer gaming has already made its mark on the entertainment world, capturing millions of users and billions of dollars on a global basis. But with the arrival of pervasive broadband connectivity, next generation hardware, mass market adoption, and a host of new, innovative multiplayer experiences the gaming industry is poised to break new ground and reach new heights. How will connected, multiplayer gaming affect the industry? With big budgets, production value, marketing and star power is it still the new movie industry? Join the thought leaders who are creating this brave new world of entertainment and hear their views on what the era of connected gaming will hold for all of us.

http://www.churchillclub.org/eventDetail.jsp?EVT_ID=686

 

[pipo]

Hopefully some sites will pick it up.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6144016.html

Online gaming has been "the next big thing" for years now, and the success stories are beginning to show their impact on the industry. From Counter-Strike to World of Warcraft, breakthrough games are piling up, increasingly making some form of connectivity a mandatory feature for upcoming products.

Last night, the Churchill Club held a panel discussion featuring a few industry heavyweights to discuss the changing landscape of game design in light of an online world. The lineup gathered to discuss "The Era of Connected Gaming - An Inside Look At An Industry On Revolution" included Lars Butler, former vice president of global online for Electronic Arts and current CEO of the upstart TWN; Laurent Detoc, president of Ubisoft North America; Raph Koster, chief creative officer of Sony Online Entertainment; and Peter Moore, corporate vice president of Microsoft's interactive entertainment business. The panel was moderated by GameSpot cofounder and senior vice president of CNET Networks' games and entertainment division, Vince Broady...

Check the link for the complete story.

 

[Tap In]

good stuff, here.

I must agree

Koster (Raph Koster, chief creative officer of Sony Online Entertainment) went beyond simply calling offline games primitive.
"The entire video game industry's history thus far has been an aberration," Koster told the audience. "It has been a mutant monster only made possible by unconnected computers. People always play games together. All of you learned to play games with each other. When you were kids, you played tag, tea parties, cops and robbers, what have you. The single-player game is a strange mutant monster which has only existed for 21 years and is about to go away because it is unnatural and abnormal."

Detoc and Butler (Lars Butler, former vice president of global online for Electronic Arts and current CEO of the upstart TWN; Laurent Detoc, president of Ubisoft North America) weren't sold on the inevitable death of single-player games, with Butler borrowing an analogy that the entire crowd instantly understood, if the laughter was any indication.
"Linear entertainment in single-player is to media what masturbation is to sex," Butler said. "It'll always be there, but it is not the real experience."

 

[Bajzel]

Absolute bullcrap. There is so many things wrong with his statements it's not even funny. The day single player gaming dies is the day I stop playing games. When I get back from work I don't want to stress myself further by competing with others in multiplayer games. Gaming is a form of escapism for me, and many others I'm sure. It's like reading a book or watching a movie.

 

[Sis]

Absolute bullcrap. There is so many things wrong with his statements it's not even funny. The day single player gaming dies is the day I stop playing games. When I get back from work I don't want to stress myself further by competing with others in multiplayer games. Gaming is a form of escapism for me, and many others I'm sure. It's like reading a book or watching a movie.

No one said playing games with others required competition. His statement, also, is hardly "Absolute bullcrap". In fact, other than solitaire, how many games do you know of throughout history that involved playing by yourself?

 

[ninzel]

Sounds like a real oversimplification of the situation. This guy actually works in the industry?Who's paying him to push this agenda.I can't imagine anyone being this one sided without having something to gain from being so.

 

[Tap In]

Sounds like a real oversimplification of the situation. This guy actually works in the industry?Who's paying him to push this agenda.I can't imagine anyone being this one sided without having something to gain from being so.

part of my quote above came from:

Raph Koster, chief creative officer of Sony Online Entertainment and the rest from Lars Butler, former vice president of global online for Electronic Arts and current CEO of the upstart TWN; Laurent Detoc, president of Ubisoft North America

 

[ninzel]

No one said playing games with others required competition. His statement, also, is hardly "Absolute bullcrap". In fact, other than solitaire, how many games do you know of throughout history that involved playing by yourself?

Well that's a very limiting way of looking at it. How many people read books, or watch TV and movies by themselves,plenty. Games can be more than just games and therefor can be compared to other mediums besides just games.

 

[ninzel]

my quote above came from:

Raph Koster, chief creative officer of Sony Online Entertainment

Sarcasm.

 

[Tap In]

Sarcasm.

Well I took it as rhetorical but I thought it was interesting to reference the sources anyway.

 

[Sis]

Well that's a very limiting way of looking at it. How many people read books, or watch TV and movies by themsleves,plenty. Games can be more than just games and therefor can be compared to other mediums besides just games.

True, but I didn't take his comment to be about that style of interactive entertainment, but more about "games".

 

[ninzel]

True, but I didn't take his comment to be about that style of interactive entertainment, but more about "games".

And that's where I think he's mistaken by even taking that view in the first place.
He strikes me as the type of person that might watch or participate in sports for example, and not neccesarily read for pleasure if these are his personal opinions.Thing is though if gaming is to become mainstream, and be reflective of the general population at large and not just reflective of the small group of traditional gamers today it will have to appeal to and encompass many demographics. Of which there will be a large contingent of people that enjoy SP games, just as they already enjoy reading and watching movies and TV, or even knitting or whatver solitary hobby they already enjoy.
There is no sense is saying that gaming will be or should be any one thing. If you want it to be as healthy and properous as possible, you want it to be everything for all people.

 

[Shifty Geezer]

No one said playing games with others required competition. His statement, also, is hardly "Absolute bullcrap". In fact, other than solitaire, how many games do you know of throughout history that involved playing by yourself?

There are many pastimes enjoyed solo. Films, books, and 'engaging worlds' are often appreciated more on one's own without distractions from other people. As a kid I played sometimes imaginitive games on my own - people with imaginiation often do. The idea of forcing people to be cooperative is crazy madness. If people really are that keen for community gaming, why is online gaming still a tiddly little niche market? You'd have thought everyone would have jumped at the chance if single player is such monstrosity.

That's a very blinkered, unintelligent attitude, assuming everyone's the same and wants the same things.

Edit : Well, Ninzel's said all this anyway!

 

[NavNucST3]

There are many pastimes enjoyed solo. Films, books, and 'engaging worlds' are often appreciated more on one's own without distractions from other people. As a kid I played sometimes imaginitive games on my own - people with imaginiation often do. The idea of forcing people to be cooperative is crazy madness. If people really are that keen for community gaming, why is online gaming still a tiddly little niche market? You'd have thought everyone would have jumped at the chance if single player is such monstrosity.

That's a very blinkered, unintelligent attitude, assuming everyone's the same and wants the same things.

Edit : Well, Ninzel's said all this anyway!

This is interesting, because I had a discussion about this the other day. From a physical stand-point you can say that people enjoy movies and books alone, but that is not the end of our interaction with the medium. It is human nature to want to share your experiences, so a single person may read a book, but then often will tell someone else how good or bad that book is, the same holds true for movies. So in essence what we are really saying is come and enjoy this book WITH me, albeit, through my verbal interpretation. Join me in this journey as we traverse these mental hills and valleys to a world where shared interaction takes place at the same time, through ones own eyes, to alleviate the need for me to impose my thought process unto your mind.

I don't mean to take anything away from single player mode, but I must say, that for myself, I enjoy single player more, when my wife and son are watching me. I enjoy watching my son play Kameo or Marble Blast Ultra or Full Auto. I guess its hard for me to see what the angst over the comments are, especially in the context of a shared community like a forum.

 

[ninzel]

I don't mean to take anything away from single player mode, but I must say, that for myself, I enjoy single player more, when my wife and son are watching me. I enjoy watching my son play Kameo or Marble Blast Ultra or Full Auto. I guess its hard for me to see what the angst over the comments are, especially in the context of a shared community like a forum.

That's a great point. I made a post awhile talking about how I think SP games will evolve to include these element in some way. But that's still a long way from the harcore ultra competive MP gaming scene like Unreal or Halo, which I see alway' s remianing in the minority.

 

[patsu]

ninzel, sounds good. Care to summarize and share your view on online gaming here ? I belong to the single player + non-competitive online gaming crowd. However I don't mind lurking to watch people play MP video games.

What would make you play MP game ?

 

[ninzel]

ninzel, sounds good. Care to summarize and share your view on online gaming here ? I belong to the single player + non-competitive online gaming crowd. However I don't mind lurking to watch people play MP video games.

What would make you play MP game ?

I can try and find the post.
I guess if the internet were more like real life where there were actualy consequences to peoples behaviour. Also if there were really high quality dedicated servers, and great cheat free monitoring,I would even consider paying for it.

I actually used to play competitively on PC, but the atittuges and technical limitations got to me. Plus I grew tired of the gametypes. I could get into co-op.I fond that without any motivation other than winning I loose interest now.

 

[patsu]

I can try and find the post.
I guess if the internet were more like real life where there were actualy consequences to peoples behaviour.

Ninzel, this is the right starting point... based on existing behaviour. I look forward to your post (since I can't find it )

 

[Luminescent]

repost. read below

 

[Luminescent]

I enjoy single player because it lets me mess around with AI implementations and witness the progression and advancement of AI. In addition, I get more satisfaction out of the fact that the processor is running branch heavy AI code as opposed to a bunch of net code. I enjoy knowing that the machine is trying to simulate everything in the game world but the playable character, and that it is precisely following a systematic system that may even theoretically approach the reality outside the gameworld. This, I believe, allows for a world of fantasy, where characters are not directly influeced by the factors outside the game world. This approach provides me with a greater sense of immersion into a universe outside the one in which I reside, although it is indirectly influenced by it.