Another post up on Gamasutra from the IMGDC event - and this one I’m simultaneously pleased and saddened by. The article is all about Dr. Richard Bartle’s Sunday Keynote. It was an inspiring, awesome look at the future of the genre. Pleased because they really got the core of his speech from my notes. Saddened because they cut out his awesome Good, Bad, Ugly analogy using movies and muppets! Ah well - just means I can post those notes here. They also cut out his rationale for why the Good would ultimately triumph, which I think is well worth reading about.

If you’d like to check out the full slideshow from the talk, Dr. Bartle has put up his Powerpoint presentation on mud.co.uk.

Dr. Bartle breaks the ice by saying “What is the purpose of a keynote?” It’s to inform, entertain, and get everyone out of bed in the morning. All three can be achieved by showing a slide of blondie with some muppets!”

The Bad: Lee Van Cleef from High Noon, first movie role, prior to that an accountant. About a brave law enforcement officer taking on ruthless outlaws gang of law enforcements officers taking on the very brave people they were trying to protect.

The Ugly: The Misfits: last movie made by Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe. Only one who survived was eli willach. Four cowboys struggling to maintain their once-romantic lifestyle in 1960s nevada. the cowboys time had come and gone; they thought they were living 100 years ago. They were trapped in the past.

The Good: Dirty Harry. Tracking down a sniper who is holding a city for ransom he’s on the side of good, but he’s an insubordinate maverick, no patience with bad guys and sees the legal system of out of touch. he wins because he has a big fucking gun. Back in 2008 mmos had a bfg. the 2008 election was the last one that saw game bashing as bad. Median age in 2007 was 36.6, Half of America was born 1970 or after. Played games, didn’t feel addicted. mmos anti-social? Hah!

The weapon was the fact that they’d already won. They had numbers on their side. They’ve won the day. older politicians were out of touch the were astonished to find that anti-mmo laws would cost them votes. Games have always been a vote winner. business and education wasted money trying to commodify the imaginatio. if you make it real it ceased to be imaginary. Serious games are on the go for 10 years but they’re not a going concern. VWs are not that big a deal.

Which way does he feel the wind is blowing? “I’ve already told you. What was the Dirty Harry character named? Blondie. I think that MMOs will win, because all that stands between Blondie and success is a bunch of muppets.”