Microsoft's Video Kinect feature allows Kinect owners to communicate on a much more personal level than voice or text chat previously allowed, but it's removed from the actual gaming experience

We’re well past the five-year mark on the current generation of game consoles, and with details of an imminent Wii successor starting to percolate, now is the time to consider what the next generation of hardware will entail.

Traditionally, competing game console manufacturers have fought clear-cut battles over hardware, software, and add-ons. But with this last generation, things changed: Nintendo rose to the front of the pack by tapping into latent audiences, and Microsoft and Sony have fought hard to win exclusive games and add-on content and to develop competing online infrastructures. The shape of the market has changed dramatically with games on new platforms like Zynga’s Facebook-based FarmVille and Rovio’s Angry Birds, arguably the single most-successful phone-based game ever made.

There’s no question that the next console war will be won by whoever is able to connect to and engage with the most people, but nobody seems to be discussing how that’s going to happen. And that’s what led to this article.

From my point of view, there are three major paradigm shifts that occurred during this most recent console generation:

1. Alternative control methods (Wii Remote, Kinect, PlayStation Move, music game controllers, etc.)
2. High-definition video
3. Robust and integrated networks for interaction and content distribution

The biggest challenge facing the next generation of consoles isn’t how to up the ante on the audiovisual front, although that’ll be critical to Microsoft and Sony in particular. In fact, a good barometer for when we’ll see a PlayStation 4 is once it’s possible to build a system capable of pumping out 1080p graphics at 60 frames per second in 3D, with all the anti-aliasing, shaders and other visual mysticism we’re used to, for under $600. But Sony’s already touting the PlayStation 3 as a capable 3D gaming machine, and many current first- and third-party games support 3D televisions.

It’s also unlikely that the next round of consoles will introduce any groundbreaking new interfaces. Kinect and PlayStation Move are here to stay for the next generation, as is Nintendo’s suite of motion controllers. We’ll undoubtedly see some improvements, but I expect they’ll be evolutionary — think high-definition Kinect video chat, updated Move controllers, and so on. Those improvements will be well-received by consumers, but they’re merely evolutionary, not disruptive.

The next consoles need to deliver a major game-changer in how we interact with our entertainment, and I think the only logical conclusion is that it’s going to be social.

This mockup of the Wii successor is just one of many asinine Photoshopped concepts already being pumped out onto the Web. Not pictured: Social presence, friendly interaction, taste

Yeah, I know, I know: Mr. Facebook is about to proselytize up a storm about how social networking will change the world. But hear me out on this.

Games are as inherently social an activity as anything else. People have found common ground and bonded over games for millennia: Chess players enjoy the thrill of both face-to-face competition and long-distance matches by mail, sports fans unite to support their favorite teams, and videogamers have swapped strategies, shared stories of their exploits and competed fervently both in-person and online for decades. Even single-player games are social experiences for the same reason books and movies are: shared narratives inevitably lead to interpretation and discussion.

What we have at this point is the infrastructure and install base to keep gamers connected to their friends and families. There’s a Wii in virtually every younger household in the country, including the White House, and families have overwhelmingly taken to the fun, accessible play in broadly appealing games like Wii Sports, Rock Band and Just Dance. Xbox and PlayStation fans have spent years building a virtual persona with an avatar and what I’d call a digital legacy: trophies, achievements, peer-reviewed gaming performance and behavior, virtual goods, and so on. Our gaming identities have become an extension of our real selves.

Everyone’s a gamer, and everyone always has been. The problem lies in the label “gamer.” We think of gamers as socially maladjusted and lethargic, unwilling or unable to contribute to society in a meaningful way. In reality, gamers are often some of the most intellectually stimulated and curious people alive.

For example, consider the person who plays World of Warcraft for two hours in the evening instead of watching a couple hours of television. Both are leisure activities, but the gamer is ostracized as being weird or disconnected. However, I see the gamer as seeking intellectual stimulation and community, and there’s nothing lazy or antisocial about that. Television is uninvolved and one-directional; gaming is interactive, engaging and reciprocal. Vilifying gaming is not unlike discouraging intellectualism.

With tens of millions engaged on a daily basis in games on Facebook, on phone-powered applications and on home consoles, there’s no question that more people are engaged in gameplay than ever before. But there are currently only rudimentary, skeletal systems for engaging with friends in games. Aside from friends lists and matchmaking systems, most of the games we play are almost indistinguishable from solitary experiences. We can hear and occasionally see the people we play videogames with, but most of the feedback we get comes from in-game actions through avatars, which are not very expressive.

What’s missing is being able to share these experiences genuinely with our friends with as little interruption and arbitration as possible. What’s missing is the human element.

Nothing will ever replace the value of sharing a game with a friend sitting next to you, but there’s a clear potential in leveraging the infrastructure that already links our consoles to an even greater degree. What if your Kinect or PlayStation Eye enabled picture-in-picture video chat during games? Or if you could assist a friend with a particularly difficult sequence in a game by watching a live feed of their game — or, to take it even further, by directly being able to take control? What would happen if faster processors and more robust broadband networks were used to break down the barriers and wait times and to reduce the latency and obfuscation of present-day online communication?

These are all just possibilities, but they all point to the real question of the next generation: What if our digital gaming experiences were as gratifying and meaningful as our real-world ones?

More and more, people are turning to social networks to express themselves on a daily basis. Facebook has more than 500 million active users, Twitter has a worldwide reach, and sites like Quora, Formspring and Tumblr are growing exponentially. No matter how you look at it, it’s clear that people want to represent themselves in a social space. And with digital infrastructure expanding and growing more robust and accessible, the time is right for game consoles to allow people to express themselves — their real selves — and to share real, meaningful experiences with the people they care about.

And what’s more social than playing a game together?

Well, the day is almost here. I’m going to be driving out to Austin, Texas in a few days to start my new job at Facebook! In light of my newfound employment, please look forward to our relaunch as the brand-new, Zynga-exclusive Silicon Sasquatch! Forget Dragon Age 2 and Diablo 3; from here on out, if the game doesn’t have “-Ville” in its name, we don’t want anything to do with it.

Nah, don’t worry. We’re still gonna keep doing what we do best — as soon as we figure out what that is, exactly.

Doug:

Charming, addictive, deep, and 99 cents: Tiny Wings is the newest true iPhone classic.

This week’s Backlog is brought to you by good game recommendations from various sources. Huzzah! Of course I’ve been playing Forza and PES and F1 2010, but new games are more fun to talk about.

As part of sending Nick off on his next adventure, he planned an outing to Ground Kontrol for the first Rock Band Tuesday since the completion of the friendly local arcade’s renovations. There’s going to be some headaches for the GK crew to sort out as they adjust to life in the new space, but all told, I’m really impressed with the changes and improvements — including with how the Rock Band setup is composed.

One of the other improvements and changes is the new Pac-Man Battle Royale cabinet right near the entrance. Imagine fast-paced traditional Pac-Man tropes mixed with musical chairs and a lot of swearing. Five quick rounds go by in a flurry of excitement. I can’t believe Pac-Man is still relevant in much the same form 30 years after the series’ beginnings.

Next, inspired by discussion of Japanese baseball games on this week’s Giant Bombcast, I went and found Baseball Superstars on iOS. It’s a deceptively detailed fun little baseball game in the style and tradition of Konami’s Japanese Power Pro baseball games. Batting is based on timing and pitching is very pared down compared with console games, but that simplicity isn’t an issue. I need to spend more time with it and dig into the deeper single-player modes, but it looks pretty featured for a game I can play on my phone.

Lastly, on the recommendation of both Nick and site contributor Tyler, I downloaded Tiny Wings for my iPhone last night as well. At first glimpse, it looks like it’s cashing in on the success of Angry Birds — small cartoonish bird games aren’t exactly a common genre, after all. However, Tiny Wings shares more in common with Excitebike than Angry Birds. Your bird has to fly based on momentum and riding hills, all based on one command: holding your finger on the screen. It’s incredibly simple but surprisingly deep and capable for such a basic game design. Plus, the graphics and music are really soothing. That’s important sometimes, you know.

Nick:

Nothing like a good, old-fashioned dumb Photoshop.

Man, Bulletstorm. I had my doubts about you, what with you slinging adolescent insults at me and threatening to do horrible things to me if I didn’t buy you. But purchase you I did, and I couldn’t be happier. Developer People Can Fly’s previous big-name series, Painkiller, is one of the best shooters I’ve ever played, and Bulletstorm keeps up with the frantic pace of its predecessor but adds a great new concept in the form of skillshots.

I’d love to write more, but I have, like, 72 more hours in town before I throw all my stuff into my car and drive a billion miles into the middle of Texas. I think right now the best thing I can do is catch up with friends and get my things ready to go, and I’m sure you’ll all agree. I’m looking forward to getting settled and getting back into my regular routine with the ‘Squatch in time for next week’s Backlog.

Until then, let me just say how grateful I am to everyone who has kept up with this blog over the last two-ish years. I think it’s fair to say I wouldn’t have been able to land a job as exciting as the one I’m going to be starting if I didn’t have this body of work behind me, and none of us would have kept it up this long if it wasn’t for your continued support and encouragement. To everyone who reads this blog: Thank you so much. I can’t express how grateful I am, and I can’t wait to get settled in Austin and to keep doing what I love. See you next weekend.

Mass Effect 3.

My Fellow Earthicans:

Good evening.

This is the 68th time I have spoken to you from this laptop, where so many decisions have been made that shaped the history of this Blog. Each time I have done so to discuss with you some matter that I believe affected the blogosphere’s interest.

In all the decisions I have made in my public life, I have always tried to do what was best for the Blog. Throughout the long and difficult period of struggling through Mass Effect 2, I have felt it was my duty to persevere, to overlook BioWare’s overzealous streamlining, to stop viewing the game as a RPG, and to make every possible effort to complete the sequel to the game I loved so much.

In the past few days, however, it has become evident to me that Mass Effect 2 is, in fact, the brilliant, evolutionary sequel everyone has been raving about. And with that in mind, I come before you to admit that I made a grievous and inexcusable error in judgment.

Therefore, I shall resign to having been “completely, totally, 100% dead wrong” about Mass Effect 2 effective at noon tomorrow. Vice President Thayer will be sworn in as “Guy Who Was Totally Right All Along Even Though Nick Won’t Admit It” at that hour in this office.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to go flirt with Miranda some more. Don’t judge.

Boasting improvements to the series' trademark intense, squad-based combat, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 has the potential to be the first major evolution in the franchise's time-honored formula since 2005's Battlefield 2

Aaron

Don’t be surprised that Mass Effect 2 is once again dominating our Backlog this week. I’ll even bet that next week’s entry will highlight Shepard’s sophomore exploits for a third time. I’m not sure where Nick and Doug are in the game, but I happened to finish it this past weekend. Mass Effect 2 was, in words taken at random from my thesaurus under the entry for “fantastic,” the cat’s meow.

After nearly two days of playtime logged with the double-disc beast, I still stand by my initial awe-filled impressions. Buy this game, rent this game, borrow this game; whatever it takes to play it, please do so. And no, BioWare didn’t hook me up to its Kubrick-inspired brainwashing machine yet — it didn’t have to. But if there’s one aspect about Mass Effect 2 I would criticize, it’s that the Insanity difficulty level is absolutely unfair. I’m going on record right now: I hate Insanity. But, as hypocritical is it is, I’m determined to finish it anyway.

Okay. Let’s switch gears and gab about the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 multiplayer demo (on Xbox 360). Or rather, I’ll type and you read.

The Battlefield franchise sits near the top of my list of all-time favorite videogame series, placed comfortably among peers such as Zelda, Mario, Suikoden and Prince of Persia. I love Battlefield. I do! So after a few years of feeling let down by the post-Battlefield 2 offerings from DICE and EA (Battlefield 1943 being the one exception), I’m happy to welcome Bad Company 2 into my home where it will receive the insomniac-driven, retina-burning devotion it needs over many, many late nights. Although I’ll be purchasing the Windows version, I’ve been having a blast — literally and metaphorically — with the demo on Xbox Live. All the classic variations of DICE’s so-called “Battlefield Moments” are there. For example: Today I launched an RPG at a tank, which never made it to its target because an unlucky pair of enemies on an ATV happened to launch from a dilapidated roof at the wrong time, thus intercepting my grenade with their faces. That unpredictable “anything can and will happen” atmosphere is the reason I continue to play each new iteration of the formula. In short: Battlefield Bad Company 2′s multiplayer is fun, fast and feels more like Battlefield 2 than I ever expected another Battlefield game could. It’s a pleasant surprise, especially when comparing it to Bad Company 1.

Also, the final season of Lost premiered this week. I don’t know what’s going on (which is normal, I suppose), but I certainly didn’t expect/want an alternate reality storyline. And Sayid? Come on.

Doug

While ambitious for a mobile rendition of the multiplatform music hit, Doug came away less than impressed with Rock Band's iPhone adaptation

Oh lordy. After not getting the chance to pick up Mass Effect 2 until late last week, I took most of the day last Sunday to power through almost half of the game.

Also, I’m blaming Nick for my nascent Facebook Bejeweled Blitz addiction. That game is pretty good.

Nick

High drama!

I’ve finally warmed up to Mass Effect 2 and, in doing so, found inner peace.

It was difficult being so dissatisfied with a sequel to one of my favorite games ever — and a sequel that has received almost universal adoration from fans and critics alike. I adored the first game’s merging of a Gears of War-style tactical shooter with modest elements of traditional role-playing games. Of course there were a number of flaws, such as the tedious exploration of mostly empty planets and cumbersome inventory system, but I was even more distressed to see so many of the first game’s systems either redesigned extensively or eschewed altogether.

But I stuck with it, and I began to realize just how much thought went into rebuilding Mass Effect into a newer, sleeker, and more accessible game. As a result, the combat is fiercer and more tactical in nature. Most importantly to me, the character development and conversation aspects have been dramatically improved. As I approach the game’s final act, my investment in and appreciation for each of my crew members has developed to a level I’d only previously seen in one other role-playing game — Dragon Age: Origins, which by no coincidence is also a BioWare production.

If I’d gone into Mass Effect 2 with open expectations I would have immediately been floored. Instead, I tried to play it like the first game, and I was promptly stonewalled by the new systems in place. If only BioWare had included a warning to veterans of the series to forget everything they knew about Mass Effect before diving into the sequel. But at this point it doesn’t matter — I’m having the time of my life scouring the galaxy, and I couldn’t be happier. BioWare has done something incredible in releasing two top-flight games that represent two extremes of the role-playing game spectrum within mere months of each other, and they deserve nothing but the highest praise for it.