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The traditional notion that computer games belong only in a mans world is being challenged by women gamers. Not only are they just playing games but also creating new technology that will take gaming to the next level.

Computer games are for kids and may be for teenagers too. Okay, men are also allowed to play without getting any flak. But not for mature women with work responsibilities and family pressures? Especially, not women in their 30s and abovemarried or single. It is okay for a thirty something woman to apply age defying makeup, control her diet to look younger while juggling family and career. But gaming is considered too self indulgent! At least, this is the unwritten social rule but increasingly women are finding gaming therapeutic as it is proving to be a stress combatant. Women in technology are working towards breaking social stereotypes about gaming and technology for the next level of games.

Gaming is a multi-billion dollar industry. One of the pioneers was Roberta Williams whose company, Sierra (now acquired by Vivendi) first came up with the King Quest Series that had people of all ages engrossed into it. She quickly turned it into a multi-million dollar franchise and proved gaming could rake in millions. We have come a long way since then but the Indian slice in the gaming industry pie is extremely limited. Hopefully, this will change with more people realizing the potential of the revenue that can be generated by a good game.

Technology
The future of gaming is dependent on new technology that gives a new experience to the gamer and its ability to address the issues of loneliness, community, and interactions. One of the most promising inventions that might revolutionize the gaming industry is the illusion transmitter. Invented and patented by Valerie Thomas in the US in the 1980s, what this device does is take 2D images and project them as 3D images into your home. Say, we are playing a game on the computer, using this technology, we would get the illusion that the characters, the tools, the background and all the images are in our room. Add to this sound and music, and it will make a great experience. This not only makes it more interactive but also gives the experience of actually being one of the characters, especially in role-playing games. One can walk into the gaming world and interact with the characters. In multi-player games, this becomes more interesting as one can interact with other real humans by talking to them in real-time and even get the family to play it. Even something like simple arcade games will become more attention grabbing while action and adventure games will become packed with live-action and seem to be out of this world. Can you imagine having The Mummy in your living room and fighting off the zombies and villains or build wonders, train armies and fight mythical monsters like those in the Age of Mythology or Rise of Nations? The illusion transmitter promises to change the face of gaming as our virtual worlds are brought into our living rooms and one does not need to go online in search of them. It also makes it more physical and one doesnt have to stay glued to the monitor screen. It is akin to the scenarios shown in the Hollywood movies like Spy Kids or Matrix trilogy except we are not plugged in. In short, the distinction between games and real worlds will vanish with this technology and one can play the game as if you are living in that world.

However, this is just one technology and there are several others like sensors that transmit senses of smell and touch to the gaming experience.

With so many revolutionary technologies available, one may ask why it isnt already here. This is due to various factors.

Hardware: While platforms have come a long way from the Atari game, we need to get hardware compatibility on computers and gaming consoles that will be able to support technologies like the illusion transmitter, so the gaming experience is enhanced. We must develop hardware that supports and is compatible with the illusion transmitter. It is expected this will be available in a year or two.

Cost: The history of gaming industry has seen high prices to offset development costs in the initial stages after which the price of games dropped. Similarly, the future of gaming is bound to get expensive initially, as companies will be spending massive amounts to create the content and develop platforms that can support new technologies. While initially, the price will be high, mass demand is bound to pull down the prices later. However, if companies that produce the hardware decide to go in for exclusive platforms and special consoles instead of upgrading existing platforms like the computer, then it is bound to fail. This is because people prefer to invest in platforms like computers as they have multiple functionality and are not for games only. This will increase the ability of gaming companies to sell their products to the mass market.

Censorship: With the older generation blaming the attitudinal problems of the current generation on gaming and new technologies, it would be tough to get them to accept illusion transmitters and other new technologies. Look at the way many try to link violent acts of youth to their playing violent or action games. Anti-violence activists and criminal lawyers say games are the root of all evils in society! Listening to them, one would think before games like Mortal Kombat, earth was a peace haven and the various wars, mass killings and the two world wars never took place. Even though there is no proof to show a direct connection between violent acts and games, many blindly advocate censorship and banning of games. Games have become an easy scapegoat for negligent parenting and irresponsibility of the adults. They need to understand that though their generation watched violent movies, it didnt make them all go on killing sprees.

Political Opposition: Since the older adults comprise a larger vote bank in several developed countries, when the vote bank demands censorship, the politicians oblige, as most of them dont understand new technology, especially virtual worlds. With technologies like illusion transmitter blurring the boundary between the actual and the virtual worlds, the reaction of most is to condemn it as bad. Political opposition is more likely as it is easier to blame an increase in crime rate or any social problem on games rather than exploring the true root causes that takes time and money.

The future of gaming is promising and the way ahead is like an exciting obstacle course as it has been in the past. However, one thing is for surethe next level would be more exhilarating than the current one!

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