Colliding With The Obvious *Update*

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There’s a one-page piece over on Wired, “When Virtual Worlds Collide” (Link), that to me is pretty much stating the obvious. If I had to guess, author Steven Johnson read Raph Koster’s now net-infamous declaration on single-player games (I mentioned Koster’s posts earlier – reLink). And maybe – probably – he’s been following news of Multiverse (also something I’ve mentioned – reLink); the effort to create an infrastructure for MMOG’s. What he misses imo are the kinds of comments I’ve made on 3D file formats and their lack of portability in that post and elsewhere (I’ve also hinted at solutions to this issue – reLink). OGLE might be neat, but it’s no substitute for a truly universal 3D format.

Maybe someday.

{Update: Terra Nova has picked up the story and posted an entry, “Yeah, not so much” (Link). The discussion over there might be of interest. I’ve only scanned the comments, but I don’t get the impression some of the people there have followed Koster’s remarks regarding single-player games residing inside a larger metaversal (is that a word?) structure. It’s really mostly about games and narratives, I think.}

4 thoughts on “Colliding With The Obvious *Update*”

  2. There is no fight. Technologies can converge while minds remain segregated. The battlefield is empty. There’s a large group of people desperate to keep virtual worlds (read: game worlds) separate from the real world. Your comments on Terra Nova highlight that.

  3. > There is no fight. Technologies can converge while minds remain segregated

    I’m just frustrated that the gates, as it were, are so controlled by the silo types. I think the frustration is fair because people will always be able to find the roped off game and role-play experience (so nothing there is being taken away), but it’s the convergence that’s being roadblocked (something is being kept from us). And hey, I’m a lover not a fighter myself :p.

  4. “people will always be able to find the roped off game and role-play experience”

    Agree. And Koster explained as much in some of his recent comments. But there is a real resistance to change and a refusal to see that point of view. I find this resistance … odd.

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