MMObility: Mobile MMO predictions

My job is so dependent on my knowing current trends and being up on all the latest titles. I also try to have a good idea about what might be coming. Really, it's not that hard to get a grasp on future trends; one trip to the mall to witness wild packs of 10-year-old girls, all running around gossip-texting on their own iPhones, provides all the evidence to show that mobility and personalization are going to be having a very good decade.

Anyone who is reading this column is probably familiar with the constant upward swing of technology. Peek into any MMO gamer's closet and you will likely find scores of gaming PC parts stacked up amongst retail game boxes (for some reason, we keep those). Over the years, your average MMO gamer will spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on the hobby.

Now the mobile market is following that trend, sort of. Instead of requiring a constant upgrade of individual parts, mobile manufacturers simply require a new purchase of the latest all-in-one device. Some of these devices are good and some bad, but everyone will have one in the next 10 years. If you don't think so, compare the price, power and number of decent PCs now to 10 years ago. Then compare the number of mobile devices in the world from just four years ago to the number right now.

Click past the cut and let's see if we can come up with some interesting predictions. Let's look a decade into the future. A decade isn't too far away to seem unreal, but it's far enough into the future to allow us to believe that truly significant changes in technology and gaming are possible, even likely. First of all, we need to consider what a massive role mobile technology plays in our society today. Just look at cellular phones (do people even call them that nowadays?). Not so long ago, one of my best friends from high school was being warned by her father to take his mobile phone along a trip. It was literally the size of a briefcase. We lugged it around and never used it simply because it cost too much.

It wasn't until several years afterward that I saw my first cell phone, let alone my first smartphone. Smartphones are essentially pocket computers with a phone included. These days they can serve up all the games we want, and they communicate and perform pretty much like a laptop or desktop with a smaller screen. I am so interested in mobile gaming and a self-contained lifestyle that I have thought of conducting an experiment that allows me access to only my mobile phone for one week. I would have to write all articles, play games, and communicate using only the mobile device for that week. The funny thing is, it would not be that challenging.

"Reading text can and probably always will have an effect on us. We are a visual species, and words are very powerful."

Of course, 10 years from now I might read this column and laugh at how primitive all that old technology seems. I think back to the first PC my wife and I bought -- it had a Celeron processor at 450 mhz, 256 megabytes of ram and a six- or eight-megabyte integrated graphics chip. We dialed into the internet every day and played games on a 15-inch screen. Looking back, I have no idea how we not only shared one PC but tolerated the sluggish connection and performance. At least the EverQuest loading screen gave you time to make supper.

So will the mobile games we are playing now seem primitive in comparison to the games of tomorrow? It is inevitable. But I would like to make a point that is not always obvious: Some games and technologies will seem primitive, some will not. I know that text-based gaming is generally seen as a charming relic of the past, but I beg to differ. There are still many very active MUD communities and many more text-based MMOs coming. I have literally looked at probably half a dozen new MUDs over the last month. Reading text can and probably always will have an effect on us. We are a visual species, and words are very powerful. They allow our brains to fill in the blanks, something that is always more powerful than even the best technologies. Our imagination can always affect us more than an image.
So picture a player 10 years from now. He is sneaking a look at his mobile device during a meeting. He wants to check his armies -- after all, war doesn't wait for you to get home for lunch. He notices that there is someone encroaching on his territory, so he zooms in and sees 400,000 animated alien troopers stomping their way toward his base. He taps the "alliance" button in the UI and types in the name of his alliance leader. Up pops a few options: Send Video or Send Text. He types out a quick message: "Help! I'm being hit at sector A-12!" and sends it to his alliance leader, who gets the message milliseconds later. Soon, reinforcements arrive to save the day.

"Despite the fact that his phone was able to project his screen onto any flat surface (thus giving him the ability to view a massive screen when needed), he preferred the security of a small screen."

What we imagined there was a scenario that combined several technologies. First of all, his mobile device would probably be about the same size as devices today. There is a maximum size limit that anyone would want to carry. Despite the fact that his phone was able to project his screen onto any flat surface (thus giving him the ability to view a massive screen when needed), he preferred the security of a small screen. In fact, most people would not want to go around projecting their images and emails on walls. The screens will stay small but will become much higher-quality.

Second, while he could have sent a beautiful, full-color video explaining the situation to his alliance leader, scribbling a note is usually the safest, quietest route. Text messaging is so popular in modern times because it is easy, quiet, and to the point (ask any sneaky teenager). Twitter is massive because people often want to say something in a quick yet effective way -- a note does that. In our example, the device owner wanted to say something quietly but effectively, so he used one of the most ancient technologies to do that.

"I have read many posts from hardcore PC gamers who brag about getting more frames per second than their eyes could even register, something that always boggles my mind."

Third, despite connections becoming more robust and more common all over the world, there is nothing faster than fast. If I send you a message or a video, it would not matter to me if it arrived faster than you could notice. I have read many posts from hardcore PC gamers who brag about getting more frames per second than their eyes could even register, something that always boggles my mind. The more important thing to note about connections in the future is that as they become more common and fast, and as more free internet pops up all over the country and the world, mobile technologies will grow faster even still to take advantage of the connection. If you had wonderful, fast and free internet everywhere you went, you would definitely feel better about using that mobile device.

Gaming in the future will become more varied thanks in large part to these new technologies. However, it's important to note how many of those technologies are ancient. Art, writing, music... no matter how fast or how reliably we can pump these into our everyday lives, gameplay is still king. While I am very excited to see graphical improvements and changes to how we interact with our games, I am more excited to see how mobile technologies affect the classic interactions of today. I don't care that my phone of the future will create more realistic-looking orcs -- I just want it to stay connected and offer a great experience.

Each week in MMObility, Beau Hindman dives into the murky waters of the most accessible and travel-friendly games around, including browser-based and smartphone MMOs. Join him as he investigates the best, worst, and most daring games to hit the smallest devices! Email him suggestions, or follow him on Twitter, Facebook, or Raptr.