Adam Creighton, Computer and Video Gaming: Web 2.0 and gaming

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Adam Creighton, Computer and Video Gaming (Subscribe)

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Web 2.0 and gaming

You hear that? It's the sound of opportunity.

Or it may be some techno-geek screaming, "F***ing get with the times, game industry!"

Web 2.0, to oversimplify, is that intersection of getting desktop-application-quality ("rich") functionality from your browser, and user-generated content that draws people in droves.

Tastes are out there. YouTube, FaceBook, and other specters of new-technology past that are, frankly, "so 2005".

Twittervision is probably a better, simple, recent example. Or SplashCast.

But what about gaming? Where's that perfect storm of Web 2.0 mashables (which, I think, are required to include at least one of Google's forever-in-"beta" products) and gaming?

Some stuff is already out there. Maybe Habbo Hotel is an example.

But what about mainstream game intersection with a Triple-A title?

Maybe this nugget missed by most folks (from GameTap's quietly launched news/feature Website) speaks to the future:

"As development on Halo 3 reaches a climax in preparation for the game's September 25 release date, developer Bungie has revealed details of an expanded file-sharing system for players with Microsoft Points to burn. Halo 3 features an innovative in-game system of file sharing, whereby custom map configurations, "game variations, screenshots, and game movies can be uploaded to Xbox Live's central servers. Every player with a copy of the game and a Live Gold subscription can upload six different pieces of content that cannot exceed 25MB in total. Bungie Pro raises the stakes, opening up a total of 24 slots and a 240MB storage total. The price of this expanded file-sharing option is 750 Microsoft Points for a year's subscription, or "around 78 cents per month," as Bungie puts it. Sophisticated integration with Bungie.net is also promised, allowing gamers to quickly navigate other users' shared content on your computer, and even queue it up for download when you next load Halo 3 on your Xbox 360. "
Interesting.

That last part is pretty key from a Web 2.0 / video game integration perspective. The stats for Halo 2 are already teasing at some cool stuff, with being able to look at in-game activity from different angles, Email it to a friend, and so on. I've got to think this is just a hint of the hidden rich-statistical goodness that is going to be in Halo 3. I claim dibbs on the phrase "rich-statistical goodness".

snapshot of a Halo 2 game played by player Hitachi Wasabe.

And I want a lot. I want to be able to set up in-console on on-Web the folks whose content I want to watch. I want to get notices when new stuff from them comes out. I want to look at the Game Viewer, and zoom in to that moment, and watch that movie, from every angle. I want to watch when I earned that 12th beat-down that also won the game, and I want to Email that to my buddy. I want to get his response in-game on the Web or on my phone. I want to be able to look at who's watching my movies and playing my maps.

And so does Bungie. You think they won't be watching the variations to which their customer base is gravitating?

I also want little things, like my Xbox Live Friends list to be accessible with my non-Xbox Live (Windows Live) Friends list from my Xbox and my computer, and I want to be be able to do the same stuff on both platforms, and have it enhanced beyond what it is -- with Xbox 360 content. Things like that.

Good times ahead for Web 2.0 and video game integration. I just hope the games industry is quick to get on the bandwagon. Or quicker, since folks have been rolling on it for a while.

And if you're a professional in the industry and in Austin for the Austin Game Developers Conference, there will be some off-schedule discussions of Web 2.0 and video game intersection. Let me know if you're interested in that, and I'll connect you with like-minded folks.

Labels: Halo, media intersection, ramblings