Gaming As A Social Experience
The "Wii" hovers at, or near, the top of Amazon's wedding gift registry (No. 1 one week, No. 2 when this column was posted). This signifies a significant shift in gaming -- Nintendo is no longer seen as an obstacle to a healthy marriage, but as a contributing factor. In addition to reflecting an increased balance in gender participation in gaming, this also indicates a focus on social gaming as opposed to solitary gaming -- a shift Nintendo has put a great deal of effort into developing.
Gaming also acts as a community building force. In MMORPGs such as "World of Warcraft," there are guilds of 40 or more people who regularly play together. On a smaller scale, this occurs with friends in many team based-games such as "Halo. " Niche communities spring up in all sorts of ways. One of my favorite recent finds was a guest piece written on Penny Arcade about a hyper-realistic modification to a flight simulation program, allowing players to act as traffic controllers for an entire network of plane takeoffs and landings, facilitated by other players.
While this is largely a good thing, the sword cuts both ways. I have some semi-serious concern over the newly announced co-op mode in Kane & Lynch. Part co-op and part every man for himself? Some people get worked up over these "video games." Kane & Lynch, congratulations - you are officially the best bet the medium has for ending a friendship. (OK - the concern is a shade less than even semi-serious. It's fun to think about, though.)
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