Ever wonder where PC Gaming and computing in general is headed? Our MMORPG's get more realistic with each new expansion and each new release. A few years ago when Ultima Online, Everquest, and others were first released they boggled our minds with their use of shading, movement, and realistic sounds. They seemed so REAL! Looking back from today's games, they look almost comic in comparison, and yet looking ahead at games like EverQuest2 and Star Wars Galaxies, the 'realism' of today's enviroments fades quickly. What is in store for us beyond those in the near future? I happened to catch a small news article on cable a few days ago about a new technology that allowed the user to actually FEEL the pressure and texture of the person he was speaking with in a virtual handshake! OMG! Imagine THAT in an online game like Anarchy Online or Dark Age of Camelot! For experts' views on where gaming is headed, GameSpy and Intel have teamed up to do a four-part series on the future of PC Gaming. These are interviews with and articles written by experts in the PC and Gaming industries. The first two can be found at Gamespy at the following links (they can also be found on Intel websites):

The Future of PC Game Engines

The Future of PC Gaming - an interview with Peter Molyneux

The next two are scheduled for Nov. 30th -

The Future of User-Created Games

Warren Spector on The Future of Gaming

We all know that technology seems to advance faster than we can build our gaming systems and our games are evolving even as we play. Hmmm, six or seven years down the road...all five senses immersed in Norrath - smell the Batwing Crunchies, taste the Halfling Pie, hear and see the enviroment to the exclusion of the real world (with no jaggies, artifacts, skips in the sounds...) and feel the rotting skin of that Ghoul as you loot it, or feel the Giant's club as it smashes your skull and splatters your brains all over the wall!!!!! WHOA!!! Let's back up here a minute.... Enjoy the articles! =)