I keep my eyes open for examples of technology convergence such as the convergence between the movie and the video gaming industries. That's why this announcement caught my attention.
The details are a bit sketchy at the time of this writing and the announced deadline is way out but it looks like the Sci Fi Channel is going to simultaneously co-produce both a TV show and an MMORPG.
How is this is different from other movie/MMORPG combinations such as Star Wars and The Matrix? In those two Sony franchises, the movies were made first then the MMORPG followed. The story arc of the game always follows what has already been revealed in the movies.
It appears that what might be different this time is that both the television producers and the game designers will have equal creative say in the franchise. The writers of the series will study what the gamers have done online to work plot elements into the show. They may also schedule events online that dovetail with what is going on in individual episodes. This new innovation kicks media demographic research up a notch from other convergence ties such as CSI:NY on SL.
Showing posts with label games. Show all posts
Showing posts with label games. Show all posts
Monday, June 2, 2008
Tuesday, October 16, 2007
Children of Men
I saw an interesting video the other day. The story line for Children of Men is a fairly straight up sample from the genre of post-apocalyptic science fiction and that alone makes it worthy to watch if you are into that sort of thing. That is not why I am writing about it here, however. What makes this movie interesting enough to comment on in a blog about contemporary culture is its innovative cinematic approach.
Industries are constantly looking for ways to converge. They do this to open up new markets and to form partnerships that enhance their value proposition without expanding payroll. One of the current hot areas for convergence is between the gaming and the movie industries. I have blogged about all of this before.
What makes the movie Children of Men interesting is in their approach towards convergence with the gaming industry. The cinematography of the movie is very reminiscent with that of the gaming genre known as the First Person Shooter. There are dialog shots in the movie that are filmed very similar to that of cut scenes in a game. In the action shots, they used a steady-cam behind the main actors as they progress through the scene. The effect is very much like being in a team based FPS where you are running behind the next gamer in front of you. You and the actors move through a battle zone trying to avoid being shot at which is a very typical challenge in a FPS style game. In another scene, one of the supporting cast members gets pulled off of a bus and you get to see her grim fate as the bus pulls away. This is a typical atmosphere building sequence that you may find in well made games.
I keep my eyes open for opportunities of convergence because I find it to be fascinating. I have previously noted other ways that the film and gaming industries are converging. What other ways do you see?
Industries are constantly looking for ways to converge. They do this to open up new markets and to form partnerships that enhance their value proposition without expanding payroll. One of the current hot areas for convergence is between the gaming and the movie industries. I have blogged about all of this before.
What makes the movie Children of Men interesting is in their approach towards convergence with the gaming industry. The cinematography of the movie is very reminiscent with that of the gaming genre known as the First Person Shooter. There are dialog shots in the movie that are filmed very similar to that of cut scenes in a game. In the action shots, they used a steady-cam behind the main actors as they progress through the scene. The effect is very much like being in a team based FPS where you are running behind the next gamer in front of you. You and the actors move through a battle zone trying to avoid being shot at which is a very typical challenge in a FPS style game. In another scene, one of the supporting cast members gets pulled off of a bus and you get to see her grim fate as the bus pulls away. This is a typical atmosphere building sequence that you may find in well made games.
I keep my eyes open for opportunities of convergence because I find it to be fascinating. I have previously noted other ways that the film and gaming industries are converging. What other ways do you see?
Friday, October 5, 2007
Interactive Fiction
Interactive Fiction is a literary genre where the reader must participate actively. It is a cross between a book and a game. Everything is in second person and you have to write it with minimal expectations about what has happened before or after any point in the story. This is not easy. I have blogged on this subject twice before.
I was so intrigued by this genre that I tried my hand at it by writing a piece and entering it into a competition. I invite you to read my submission. My piece is called Reconciling Mother.
I was so intrigued by this genre that I tried my hand at it by writing a piece and entering it into a competition. I invite you to read my submission. My piece is called Reconciling Mother.
Sunday, July 8, 2007
New Coolness for the Casual Gamer
I have recently run across an interesting and innovative trend in gaming, the live Linux games DVD. This is especially interesting to me because I am only a very casual gamer. I just want to spend thirty minutes gaming as a release after a hard day. I'll play one game for a while, get bored, then drop it for another. I don't want to spend a lot of time, energy, and money building up a game persona or leveling up a RPG character like you would developing a career. This is where the live Linux game DVD comes in.
Linux is an O.S. where you don't have to install it on your hard drive. There are many what are called live DVD distributions of Linux. You just boot off of the DVD and you are running Linux. You will, most probably, have to make a BIOS change in order to boot off of the DVD player. There are plenty of live DVD Linux distributions out there. My favorites of this category are Knoppix and Ubuntu. The live DVD version of Ubuntu is a little hard to find. I recommend using a bit torrent client to download it. Here is where you can find the relevant tracker.
The open source roots of Linux make it to be very customizable and Linux installers are also very customizable. There are different Linux distros (short for distribution) for just about any need under the sun. Casual gaming has been recognized as one of those needs. A couple of years back, I ran across a variant of Knoppix devoted to gaming. It did have some cool games on it but most of the games were not very good. It felt like the makers of this distro didn't have enough commitment to make this bootable DVD really exciting.
Recently, I ran across a great bootable Linux DVD for games called Live Linux Gamers. This is the one to watch. There are games for every genre lover. Warsow and Tremulous are both great networked, team based first person shooters. Sauerbraten is also a first person shooter but with a great collection of maps built in for some fun single player action. Neverball is a nice 3D platform game. Glest and warzone 2100 are real time strategy games. The former is set in a medieval (i.e. warcraft) setting while the later is more futuristic (i.e. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri).
Wesnoth is a nice turn based strategy game. Torc is a cool 3D car racing game and gl-117 is an action flight simulator that is worthy of playing. There are other games on this DVD so you won't be in danger of getting bored anytime soon. I only mentioned my favorites.
Although the creative is not as talented as their proprietary counterparts, I prefer these over the high-end, expensive games for reasons that are really compelling for the casual gamer. There is nothing to install on your hard drive so you don't take any risks with messing up your system. These games are made by game lovers so the game play itself is excellent. There is a wide and disparate selection so if you get bored with one, just go to the next. Best of all, they're free.
Linux is an O.S. where you don't have to install it on your hard drive. There are many what are called live DVD distributions of Linux. You just boot off of the DVD and you are running Linux. You will, most probably, have to make a BIOS change in order to boot off of the DVD player. There are plenty of live DVD Linux distributions out there. My favorites of this category are Knoppix and Ubuntu. The live DVD version of Ubuntu is a little hard to find. I recommend using a bit torrent client to download it. Here is where you can find the relevant tracker.
The open source roots of Linux make it to be very customizable and Linux installers are also very customizable. There are different Linux distros (short for distribution) for just about any need under the sun. Casual gaming has been recognized as one of those needs. A couple of years back, I ran across a variant of Knoppix devoted to gaming. It did have some cool games on it but most of the games were not very good. It felt like the makers of this distro didn't have enough commitment to make this bootable DVD really exciting.
Recently, I ran across a great bootable Linux DVD for games called Live Linux Gamers. This is the one to watch. There are games for every genre lover. Warsow and Tremulous are both great networked, team based first person shooters. Sauerbraten is also a first person shooter but with a great collection of maps built in for some fun single player action. Neverball is a nice 3D platform game. Glest and warzone 2100 are real time strategy games. The former is set in a medieval (i.e. warcraft) setting while the later is more futuristic (i.e. Sid Meier's Alpha Centauri).
Wesnoth is a nice turn based strategy game. Torc is a cool 3D car racing game and gl-117 is an action flight simulator that is worthy of playing. There are other games on this DVD so you won't be in danger of getting bored anytime soon. I only mentioned my favorites.
Although the creative is not as talented as their proprietary counterparts, I prefer these over the high-end, expensive games for reasons that are really compelling for the casual gamer. There is nothing to install on your hard drive so you don't take any risks with messing up your system. These games are made by game lovers so the game play itself is excellent. There is a wide and disparate selection so if you get bored with one, just go to the next. Best of all, they're free.
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