The Evolution of Gaming

From Warcraft to Final Fantasy to the upcoming Warhammer Online, games are slowly evolving from play/win mode to play/play mode, where the game never ends and the fun is in the social aspects and the process you use to better yourself. These Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games, or MMORPGs, are prime examples of gaming and social life combining to create the most popular pseudo-universes in the world.

WoW
World of Warcraft is the old example. While there are goals and levels, the game technically never ends. People from countries all over the planet play the World of Warcraft regularly, playing the game on a daily basis and completing quests and socializing with others. But World of Warcraft was based on an older game, "Warcraft" that already had its own computer presence.

Warhammer Online
Today, even non-computer games are turning to MMORPG platforms. Warhammer Online, scheduled to be released in September of 2008, is based on an offline, computer-less game known as Warhammer, that takes place with dice, miniature sculptures/characters, and a tabletop. That game was incredibly popular throughout the world, featuring over 8 different editions, hundreds of characters and rules, and a complexity that made the table top become its own world. But table tops have limitations. You cannot create new rules or quests on the fly. You cannot choose where to go at your leisure and most of all you cannot socialize. The game was designed for people that enjoyed playing competitive games alone with strict guidelines. Warhammer Online allows them to change that. By taking Warhammer online, the company can turn the universe into something far more dynamic. They can come up with quests that require teams or goals that take weeks to accomplish. They can make the game as complex or simple as they want and negate all of the limitations of the table top.

Most importantly, Warhammer Online has the ability to be a new universe that every day people can enjoy regularly, without requiring another player is around to compete with and without requiring every "piece" be properly located on the table. Warhammer Online is the next in a series of games that plan on taking advantage of the MMORPG craze. Assuming Warhammer Online achieves the same success as World of Warcraft, assume that many other offline games are likely to go the same route in the future. Warhammer Online is taking the first step towards the future of all games. One can only wonder where it will lead in the future.