Transparency

With all the buzz over the potential of a controllerless revolution I find myself wanting to remind people of the joy of interaction with specific rules and physical objects.

I believe that Natal and other motion manipulated devices will lead us towards even more and more subtle experiences. This is both an interesting prospect and a worrisome one.

In board games players physically interact with the board and its playing pieces. If we removed the movable pieces and responded to the play area with symantic casting gestures we would also remove the purpose of creating the physical parts to begin with.

Much like if we all start shadow boxing Miis and forget how to take one on the chin we may find ourselves unequipped with basic life skills.

With video capture devices that track positional movement we can easily imagine experiences being developed that are so subtle that they may effect every piece of media you interact with.

Why limit this to games? Certainly M$ and others are looking at controlling all media and not just electronic games published by the top 3. In schools and stores we will see this being used to greet customers, direct them to a table, remind them to stand straight when they walk, and we will see a whole new social level of control as these devices communicate your every movement to those in your friends list or any corporate/governmental group with the ability to view this data.

Clothing styles will be manipulated by games and these devices will unfortunately become so widely accepted that they will become trusted as harmless enhancements to a better fun-time.

I am certainly not fearful of these devices, but I do foresee a massive change in the way we as human society draw our boundaries around what is acceptable and not. The level of privacy we once held on to for dear life is very rapidly being replaced with a new level of transparency into everything we do at all hours of everyday.

There can be no electronic replacement for throwing and catching a ball. No replacement for the sensation of breaking through choppy water from a high dive. Life is not delivered to us just through our eyes and ears, yet this seems to be the direction we are trying to go. Will we remember what freshly smashed garlic smells like when we have simulated cooking games with scent emitters strapped to our faces?