Im not someone thats all ready thinking about the next gen of gaming, im happy to stay in this gen as long as possible. Was just wondering what can be done next? Im sure during every gen people have thought what can the do next, it can’t get better than this, im sure this was said back in the NES era and even before it does anyone believe we have reached a graphical plato and no huge improvements can be made? (i know plenty of games need more polish but thats usually down to laziness or that, the power is there if its optomised) other that more processing power to say put more characters on screen or graphical power what improvements can be made? is HD as high as reasonably necessary? (would we notice any more detail)
things are propably going to go even more 'life like' .. the down side is that ppl without the latest rig are not going to see the improvement.
I can't see how it can get much better, I know there are plans to increase the resolution of HD, but unless you have a 100" screen that you sit right in front of, there's no point in it. I know there is a bit of room for improvement with graphics, but I think soon we'll reach the maximum of what we're capable of and developers will then have to concentrate on improving the gameplay or think of innovative games or controls, such as the Wii's motion control.
consoles havent been optomised yet, with the ps2 improvements were made well into the consoles life, GTA3 to GTA SA for example. im sure theres alot of potential yet to be sqeezed out of current consoles. HD is going to get to the point where your eyes wont pick up any higher detail
An attempt to be the only box under the box. All your entertainment needs in one box. I doubt one of the big three will cover all the bases, just continue with their respective paths. Gaming - better graphics (just coz they will) and better/different style of control? Building on the popularity of the Wiimote, Guitar Hero and DS. Video/ Music/Photos – Blue-Ray or its successor could be a must (well for Sony at least)? Much improved media functionality, better controls, better interface – just like your chosen media player(s) on your PC/Mac. On demand content? integrated PVR? etc Internet – a quality browser, that works as good as you’d expect on a PC/Mac! Integration – better/more dynamic integration with same brand handhelds and other portables (mobiles, cameras, iPod/mp3), more of a media hub for other wireless devices. Online – better stores, social systems, ranking. Hmmm sounds like a PS360ii/PC hybrid. But I guess consoles are playing catch up with PC. PC’s are (or can) be all of the above. I guess the only issue is money, and how much longer PC’s and consoles will be separate entities. IIRC some PC manufactures have attempted or conceptualised gaming PC’s which where more console than PC.
I'd quite like Graphics to improve to the point where it looks like you're watching an HD movie. Nvidia could actually use their Head Tech demo then...
theres still a very, very long way to graphical perfection, yeah it looks pretty good now, but when 3d monitors come into play they'll be a lot more work to be done, and then even more when its all headsets. Computers are still in their infancy, the next generation will just be another small baby step
The problem i foresee with more graphical prowess becomes content creation. Same with physics. Sure, it's really nice to boast with a game where every wall will blow up realistically, but think of it this way: dust, pebbles, bricks, plaster... all need to be textured an bumpmapped, etc. I think the next "big thing" that's going to happen (is happening already) is more procedurally generated content (Oblivion trees being the shining example). More small companies that handle specific things (again - the trees spring to mind - look at UT3) that get bought by big development houses and then compounded into engines. Mashups, essentially. After content creation has become quicker (by a big margin), we're going to see more detailed graphics, physics, etc. It's not that i think we've reached even a temporary plateau in graphics/physics, but until we see REALLY big things, some hurdles need to be overcome. HD is at a temporary flat level. Mainly due to the neww display port standard that needs to come in. Storage wise, you're going to see SSD making a BIG impact in the next couple of years (starting Q3 next year, i estimate). On the mobile side of things, you're looking at more screen, less phone. More Multi-function devices that become bigger parts of our everyday lives. Think sub-Atom-sized CPU's in phones that look like GPS's... that's my idea of the future... flying cars? Nope. All electric cars? not in the next 20 years. Same goes for hydrogen fuel cells, etc... Talking everyday now, not "one"... VR? not happening until LOADS of hurdles are sorted...
Randy Pitchford of Gearbox Software says Videogaming is still "in the stone age" I'd agree there.. Look at the progression of Film in the last 100 years.. It's come a hell of a long way, but still has further to go... I reckon that by 2080 we'll still have further to go in Games..
I'm beginning to wonder whether the "next big thing" is something a little more subtle. Each time there's a big leap forwards in terms of gaming (or even technology for that matter), its due to a combination of the science becoming refined, and the cost of the related technology decreasing. For example - 3D gaming really took off because it exploited the fact that people like 3DFX and Matrox had started releasing these new-fangled "Accelerator" cards. Flight sims had a run at being phenomenally popular because suddenly there were affordable force feedback joysticks, or realistic flight yokes. Even on a deeper level, things like cinematic RPGs started really coming into their own when CDs and eventually DVDs broke into the mainstream. When we look at today, the most recent and obvious breakthrough is the huge proliferation of high speed always-on broadband internet connections. A huge proportion of PC users now use Broadband (well, here at least), especially gamers. I think finding new and wonderful things to take advantage of this is going to be the next leap forwards. Look at Spore as an example - it's a single player game, yet pulls content from everyone else playing the game, so you can meet other players species and creatures. And the huge success of World of Warcraft - people like playing in (and socialising in) a world that doesnt disappear the second you hit the off button. However, it's slightly more difficult to see how this will work. But could still be interesting. For example - imagine the scenario of a Star Wars based, Jedi centric game. "Force Unleashed 2" if you will. Imagine the possibility of each players recorded deaths or successes effecting a global "Force" level - so when the force becomes particularly weak (like a million tiny voices crying out "Nooo! Pwnd!"), you need to recuperate more and take it easy. Or, imagine this: you're playing Call of Duty 5 (or any other WWII based shooter). Each month, the number of offline AND online successes / losses for each side will determine which side progresses more, affecting all upcoming single or multiplayer sessions. For example - if the Allies really pull through and win lots of matches, then next month the allies will have the stronger start positions in multiplayer. Of course, these are possibly pants examples, but I think this whole idea of "semi multiplayer" gaming is going to become an awful lot more widespread before too long...
God I remember playing F-15 strike eagle 2 on my 386 with a big joystick when i was like 7 years old, made me feel like a fighter pilot, I didn't think it could get better than that and here we are today >_< http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8QMypea1N0&feature=related It's exactly as I remember it lol
i think it will be more subtle, more processing power for little things, enviorments that move and change dynamicly, trees grass moving ,destructive enviroments have to be the norm on the semi multiplayer, it would be great if the enemy AI was "learnt" from the players that have played the single player already. this could make computer generated enemies alot more challanging. i would also hope (like the PS3 dl version of burnout paradise) that an option would be given on all games as a dowload or buy as a disc, save all the scratched discs and would be cheaper for games you intended to keep and not sell as preowned.
Good points here.. 4D environments are definitely going to become more and more prevalent, I mean, we've had non static objects since at least HL2.. and destructible environments since at least Red Faction, and there are more and more games incorporating them too..
Graphics area quite good at the moment.. Things that need sorting are shadows and jaggies. I'm happy with the realism as it it. More texture resolution would be nice, but I would hope that games never go uber real. Real life looks boring! (for the most part) Animation needs to go all procedural. AI can only get better. One thing I really want to see happening is more thought put into the player character in FPS games. None of this rigid floating head stuff. I admire HL for wanting to involve the player as much as possible, but I'm sitting in a chair with my legs under a desk wearing my boxers. I don't care if my legs don't look like that in game. I want to wear the hazard suit damnit! When driving a car in racing games as well actually. The head is jsut fixed even slamming into a wall at 80mph. For the rest of this generation, graphically, it will be about the little touches that bring games to life more I think. Graphics as a whole have already topped out. Sound needs to get better. Stories, characters and other stuff that gets the player thinking needs to improve with certain genres. ie, super monkey ball would not benefit from Alyx Vance.
Hardware needs to improve a lot before anything next gen happens. I mean, we have Crysis, which is only just now getting decent FPS.
