What is it that we actually want in the future for gaming?  This is something I imagine developers struggle with quiet often.  The question on its surface sounds empty and easy to answer.  I say we obviously want innovation and better graphics.  Really?  How many times have I bought the game Mario 3?  Let's see...I bought it when it came out(1).  I bought it again when it was in Super Mario AllStars(2).  I bought it for the Game Boy Advanced (3).   And I downloaded it on Wii(4).  This probably makes me an idiot, but I'm guessing I'm not alone.

Beyond buying the same game more than once, how many remakes of classic games are currently on the market?  Pac-Man, Bionic Commando, Arkaniod, and Space Invaders, to name a few, have all been gussied up for today's marketplace.  We can play the original Doom AND Wolfenstein anytime we want, just like we could 50 years ago.  Are these games bad?  NO!  They are classics and much like a classic movie they are still worth appreciating today.  But the sale of these really doesn't lend credit to me wanting innovation and better graphics in future games.

I'm not saying we can have classic games or we can have future games, both are parts of the vast spectrum of gaming.  But bear with me further.

Let's take the Madden franchise.  Arguably one of the best selling franchises of all time, and most definitely the best selling sports franchise.  What do I want in the next Madden?  Better graphics and more innovation (really what I want is for me to be able to throw a touchdown when I'm on the goal line and not have my receiver run out of the back of the end zone before he catches the ball!).  But while I do expect Madden to be different in some way from the current Madden, I don't want it to be TO different.  It's like a magical line they have to walk for me to be happy.  It has to be "better" in a way that I don't feel I should of just been offered a roster update, but it can't be to innovative or I'll be angry that the buttons don't work the same way anymore.

I remember when the DS was launching and people thought Nintendo was off their rocker for adding two screens.  It sounds so silly doesn't it?  "Hey I know, we'll have 2 screens!  GENIUS!"  (Warning Simpons reference) Like when Frank Grimes entered Homer into the children's contest to make a power plant of the future.  Martin Prince makes one that is actually powering the room but Homer makes one that looks just like the actual plant except he added some racing stripes.  Now the DS is the best selling system around.

How about the most recent major innovation in home gaming; motion controls.  There are a lot of mixed feelings about motion controls in games.  Some people hate them and some people only play games that use them.  I used to own a Wii and for a while it was great.  I imagine a lot of you are like me in that the first time you tried the Wii you thought it was totally awesome...then two days later you were watching reruns of Saved by the Bell instead of playing.  Then it sat on your shelf until you sold it to some desperate mom for a small profit.  Still for all its short comings I have come to appreciate the Wii.  I was able to play Boom Blox with my nephews and bond over a game.  I'd never be able to play Halo 3 with them.  Yes, there are a lot of baby games, games with waggle thrown in for no reason, and all games come with the caveat of "Looks good for a Wii game." Still, the fact is there are good experiences that you can currently only get on the Wii. 

Now Sony and Xbox are coming out with their own motion controls.  Are we happy about the innovation?  Not really.  Mostly we are worried we are going to get more of the same garbage that is on Wii, but with better graphics...which oddly enough is one of the main knocks on the Wii itself.  Maybe there is a developer that can make a game for Natal or the PS3 wands that is really going to blow my mind?  Shouldn't I be happy that this experience is now possible?  Or should I worry that another, better non-motion controlled game isn't going to get made?  Do I have to pick one or the other?

Still I don't know what it is that we want in games.  I loved Braid and Portal.  Two games that in my mind were very innovative.  Flower is popular, but I'm not even sure that's a game.  Noby Noby Boy is something I'm not even sure is a THING.  I guess I have mixed feelings on what I want in games for the future.  One thing is for sure though, like most gamers, I'll know right away when there is something I don't want.