It has been said time and time again that the future of gaming is going to become mobile. There are currently many advances coming to the cell phone that will change the way mobile gaming is done. It will be quite sometime before mobile gaming topples the console or the pc but many industry analysts think that it is just a matter of time.

One of the most exciting new features coming to cell phones is being pushed by Cingular Wireless and Verizon Wireless. The idea is that you can stream television directly to your mobile phone. This programming is essentially cable TV, and will cost you an additional fee each month. I find this particularly cool because it will allow cell phone users the ability to tune in to live TV from almost anywhere. This leap brings streaming mobile video into the main stream. Be aware that only the newest phones have the ability to use these cool features.

Another new advance in cell phone gaming was released just recently by July Systems for the United Kingdom mobile market. The new service is a Mobile Game Tournament system that allows users to compete and win prizes and is called Jippii. This service allows user to download special tournament-enabled versions of certain games and then post their scores to leader boards. The subscription is done on a week by week basis, so you don't need to pay when you aren't playing. The first tournament is for the very popular Gem Jam game and has such prizes as iPods, Xbox consoles, Nintendo Game Boys and Nokia N-Gage gaming phones.

These new technologies only open the door wider for more innovative mobile game content. So with the release of this generation of technology the question is what is coming in the future?

Some changes I see are coming in the form of non-gamers playing games. By non-gamers I mean people who do not regularly enjoy or play console or PC games. The idea of a cell phone game is usually very appealing to anyone (regardless of gaming background). This new market is currently seeing a renaissance of retro games like the almighty Pacman and Tetris. This has been going on for sometime now and as phones get upgraded there will be a much larger market.

I think the new direction will come in networked mobile games. As we see a rise in the number of gamers there will be a larger need to get them to play together. The release of the tournament technology just shows that soon massive multiplayer style games will be coming to your mobile device. Soon enough we will be seeing real-time multiplayer games with servers that can hold your stats and rankings. I am sure that not far off from that we can expect to see some MMORPGS crashing into the mobile scene.

I can't wait to get a new phone.

-Seth (15-Feb-2005)

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