The final project was created by Thomas and Sandra. Our new suite of games brings traditional party games to the live web. The first product is an online realtime live charades game called Pantomeme. This is currently the only game of it’s kind, but expect more of these games to appear in the near future, as video conferencing technology and bandwidth improve. Check out the demo at http://www.pantomeme.org. Webcam is required to play.
Right click on the flash to view source.
This test switches between on demand and live playback streams. This has been successful.
This tests the playback of 3 on demand videos from FMS on one connection. So far the performance is choppy.
Internet Casual Gaming
Casual Gaming has been a growing trend on console platforms such as Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS. Unlike traditional ‘gamers’, who are primarily male and young, casual gamers extend to the older and female demographic. Casual games have a lower learning curve and require less commitment to play, making it easier for a wider audience to break in. On the internet Flash is becoming the platform of development for casual games. A few games such as Desktop Tower Defense have become hugely popular. As for 2007, The casual gaming market pulls in 2.25 billion annually and has experienced growth of 20% per year. There seems to be several models for generating revenue. Casual gamers expect the game to be free to play, so game companies use in-game advertising for revenue. Another way is to give the web version for free, and charge for the mobile downloaded version or the computer downloaded version. Compared to hardcore traditional games, the margins are smaller but so are the development costs.
Casual Gaming sites are beginning to include social and multiplayer aspects to their games. I’m in Like With You allows player profiles and some social interaction within their chatrooms. Draw My Thing is a popular flash game modeled after pictionary which involves social interaction and some limited chat. This type of game is accessing an untapped audience of ‘casual party gamers’. There is potential growth and innovation as game developers figure out how to bring the best elements of party games to a virtual setting, and how to augment this experience with the unique scaling and telepresence that comes with the internet.
