Games Embracing Social and Geo-Location Opportunities

I'm a huge fan of games. I can remember coming home and seeing an un-boxed Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) on top of the TV. The first real video games to ever come into my household; late nights followed as I journeyed with Mario and his brother through the Mushroom Kingdom, battled flying ducks while enduring a laughing dog when I failed, and attempting to land a military jet in Top Gun. I hold these memories near and dear as they were the beginning of a long time passion that I, till this day, still enjoy.

Before video game entertainment was so popular in our homes, we relied on arcades to fulfill our need to game and interact with other games. Those were the days when placing a quarter on the machine meant you had the next game. There was something magical about seeing what new games were released and how high of a score you could get.

Entertainment as A Social Tool

Entertainment is naturally social. Think of movies, sports, music, and video games. We all share our experiences with someone whether in person or over the distances, the idea of shared experiences are very common in our lives. As such it was great to see a company like Square Enix, famous for their Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games, take the risk of integrating not just a single player experience, but a more social and geo-location based experience by connecting with popular electronic brands.

I'm not sure if this is what fans want, but it's a great experiment not just for the video game, but also for companies like GameStop and Best Buy. I'd be interested to see the response to this. Interacting at this level is not necessary to complete the game, but adds another layer of engagement.

Grand experiment or sure to fail? I personally would love to see more of this real life interaction for the variety of entertainment that I engage with, and I'd like to hear if you would too.