Turning a corner: games and the social content

Abstract

Electronic games have moved to the mainstream. With this change has come a new set of challenges for engineers, developers, and funding entities. Thirdgeneration game warfare goes beyond the reflex-reaction of the first and secondgeneration games, particularly with regard to warfare. The task today is to blend a data rich environment, near real time updates, and cognitive change within a context. Funding agencies, particularly for government-sponsored projects, require two different approaches to engineering design. The first is the need for architecting so that one or more elements can be easily repurposed. Repurposing means that the cost of developing a function or feature can be spread across multiple event delivery platforms. The second is the need for cost reduction and even cost recovery. The outcome of these two different engineering boundaries is a change in the way second-generation games and third-generation games are planned, constructed, implemented, and repurposed. The outlook for games is more robust than for some other types of applications but the opportunities come with greater costs. Changes include the need for online support, use of game-like functions outside of a game environment on analysts’ desktops, and an increased discipline with regard to code, team composition, and engineering tactics.