Thoughts on current trends.

I've been thinking a lot lately how gaming is changing and evolving, and what it's gonna look like going forward.  This was really brought to the forefront of my mind with games like Heavy Rain being released, as well as Alan Wake just around the corner.  Cut from the same psychological thriller mold, these titles embrace a very cinematic quality in their approach to narrative, almost trying to capture what it would be like to be responsible for the events of a film, as they happen in real time.

At this point I'll hop on my high horse and wax philosophic about how games are intrinsically different from film, and should be treated as such.  Game storytelling is almost paradoxical - without borrowing from other artistic genres, games really don't have much storytelling ability behind them, but after those elements are borrowed, games can tell stories in such a way that it makes them unique from any of these other mediums.  The question we need to ask ourselves is how much do we want to let those other mediums' influence the direction games are headed?

I'm not certain that the direction that Heavy Rain and Alan Wake are moving in is a natural one.  I almost feel like the development process behind these (admittedly awesome looking) titles is one of fear of progression.  They're still holding very closely to the parent art forms they were so influenced by, and lack the ability to branch off and become their own product.  Heavy Rain, as interesting of a concept, as gorgeous as it was, was still just a playable movie filled with quick time events.  Alan Wake looks a little more on the playable end, but we'll have to wait and see.

I think one of the most interesting futures for games comes from the social aspect.  Socialization and gaming have never really been that far apart, but rarely is that socialization in the framework of the game.  It's usually been outside the game, in the "culture" of gaming (i.e. Arcades).  With the rise and popularity of games like Farmville, Yo-ville, Mafia Wars, and other Facebook games, we're seeing elements of socialization being spun into the fabric of the games design.

Why are these games so popular?  I should probably play one before writing about them any further, but I'm afraid that I'll get hooked like so many other people I know.  These games have struck a strong chord in the hearts of so many people, probably due to it's strong connection to the social networking.  Farmville follows design rules that reward/require the player to help and be helped by their friends.  This isn't anything new to games as a whole (Borderlands anyone?) but by integrating it into the preexisting social network, all they had to do was package a product someone would be attracted to.

Let's go to a real world example.  Susie is really kinda interested in gaming, but lacks the conviction to make the commitment.  A DS would probably be a great choice, but she would have to buy the system, learn about the games, find something she likes, and if she wants to do the cooperative gameplay, she'd need to find a group to play with.  Farmville doesn't beat around the bush, though.  It follows the same simple rules console games have, it's available on a platform she won't need to make any additional investment in, and the social aspects of the game are already there because they're built around a current, active, comprehensive social network.

Am I looking forward to Farmville 2? Hardly, but I am excited to see how socialization works it's way into gameplay.  I socialize a great deal while I play games, but the game isn't encouraging me to do that, it's my own goal and hopes.  I don't really know how it's all going to change, but I am excited to see a different direction of thought starting to influence how we make games.  I can only handle so many games that are like films...