The Word of the Day is: TOUCH

I went to Computex today. Unfortunately, it was the last day of the exhibition, and the only day I could attend. (A trip to the hospital clinic and extremely strong sleep inducing side effects prevented me from attending earlier; more on that fun later.)

While the exhibition was in reality only tangentially useful to me, I am glad I made it. The next wave of technology will of course have a direct effect on what games can be made. Based on what I saw at Computex, I expect to see the market flooded with touch games over the next couple of years.

Everything was touch screen, tvs, computers, cell phones, tablets, and more. This list is not exhaustive and is only to illustrate a point, because in fact, I also noted that these categories are becoming less and less useful.

Take for example this one …. thing that I saw. At first glance I would call it a TV. It was 42” and hanging on the wall of this booth. There was a remote that could be used to flip through channels, for when you don’t want to get off the couch, and touch screen capabilities, for when you want a more personal relationship with your entertainment. This wasn’t really a TV, however, it was really a computer. I just wanted to call it a TV because it was 42” and hung on the wall. So after after showing me a couple clips of beautiful movie images, I watched someone check their email.

Now part of me looks at this and thinks, what a waste. Such a beautiful display and interface is wasted on something as mundane as email. The rest of me, on the other hand, imagines myself able to get dressed for school while I read email on my 42” inch screen and drools. Yes, Santa Claus, if you are reading this, I want one for Christmas. I have been very good and hardworking this year, I think I deserve it.

In truth, despite my recognition that most of the things I saw were essentially nothing more than expensive toys, I couldn’t help imagining myself living in a luxury apartment filled with the latest everything. I felt like a 5 year old kid in a candy store with my mouth wired shut. It was so unfair.