Top Technologies of Next-Gen Gaming

SlappingOysters writes "Gameplayer is running an article that examines the key technology developments of the next-generation of gaming. They go into plenty of detail as to why they believe each piece of technology is helping to take gaming on the PC, Xbox 360, PS3 and Wii to more spectacular heights. They also have a related story which takes a look at the best game engines of next-generation games."

Re:Wait....

[AKAImBatman]

on the next gen (ps3/x360)

See, right there. You did it. "Next-gen" and "PS3/360" right next to each other. That's bloody confusing. PS3 and 360 cannot possibly be "next" generation as they are here today and have been here for 2-3 years. The "next" generation is whatever comes after them. Even worse, the title of the article (Top 10 Game Technologies of the Next-Generation) uses a hyphen between "Next" and "Generation". Are they referring to some generation called "Next"? Maybe the kids who grew up with "Next" magazine?

Is there something wrong with saying, "Upcoming technologies for the latest game systems"? Or is that not hip enough for the Next magazine generation?

Please stop the abuse of the English language!

Procedural Generation vs Virtualized Textures?

[SanityInAnarchy]

#5 is procedural generation -- which suggests that, rather than drawing each individual texture, we'd write algorithms and let them generate themselves.

#7 is id's megatextures, which suggests that, rather than doing anything algorithmic, we'll just add more and more detail to a gigantic image.

These seem to be pretty much direct opposites of each other. Are they suggesting that each will be good for different areas? Or do they just not know what they're talking about?

Or maybe I don't know what I'm talking about.

Re:Mind Control?

[Singularitarian2048]

Exactly, that's what's missing from this list.

I want a set of cameras to track my movements (in my living room) and map them onto the movements of a video game character. Eyetoy does this somewhat already, but you need multiple cameras to do it right.

Re:Wait....

[moderatorrater]

There's no generation on the horizon. PS2 still dominates the market by large numbers. The best selling of the new batch is the one most like the last generation. The 360 et al are certainly not yet the current generation by most measurements.

I'm not trying to flame or troll or anything, but until the 360 or ps3 dominate the landscape or the generation after them is announced, they're going to be next generation. For the majority of users, the ps3 or xbox 360 are not their current consoles, they're the next one.

Re:Mind Control?

[spyrochaete]

Sega licensed a third-party motion detector product for the Genesis in the 90s, but took it off shelves almost immediately. People were flailing all over the place, knocking objects and other people all around their living rooms. Profits don't outweigh the legal responsibility for a product like this. Plus, it'd be pretty exhausting to play Mario.

Re:These are the top 10?

[A Pancake]

Graphical fluff works towards making a game a more immersive experience. Could Bioshock tell the same story and have the same expereince with the graphics engines of 6 years ago? Probably. Would the experience have been as immersive and therefore memorable? Probably not.