DICE 2009: Dave Perry predicts rise of free, online games, death of single-player titles
by Griffin McElroy 
on Feb 19th 2009 9:50PM
Continuing the trend of DICE 2009 speakers
casting chicken bones and
reading crystal balls in order to divine the secrets of upcoming movements in the gaming industry,
Dave Perry (founder of the now defunct Shiny Entertainment and all-around industry veteran)
possessed a unique, unsettling vision for the future. He explained that as the technology supporting remote storage and processing improves, the need for gamers to own hardware and software will naturally disappear, ushering in a gaming era where
free-to-play online titles reign supreme.
As
totally awesome as a world where all video games are sans-price sounds, Perry cautioned that this scenario means that "the days of single-player games are numbered." Equally alarming is the fact that this new business model would make it extremely difficult for traditional developers to compete against their uncostly competitors. Worst of all, think of the impact the rise of Flash games will have on poor ol'
GameStop! That part alone is going to prevent us from getting
any sleep tonight.
