The drive for gamers who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s was most likely to reach the last level, face off against the final boss, and be the one to declare “hell yeah I beat it.”

Endgame – particularly needing to see what the last stage and boss looked like – was the dominant mentality back then, partly because of the hellish difficulty in games, partly because of a game’s unalterable nature, which isn’t points off its score. That’s how games were, and that’s what gamers – and everyone else – expected from the industry.

Nowadays games have turned multiplayer; even single-player experiences have elements that allow themselves to be part of the community. Connectivity has changed the industry, has allowed games to reach a much broader audience.

In a Gamasutra article, Valve co-founder Gabe Newell says, “…you can’t be a game company anymore, you have to be an entertainment company,” that “when you focus on entertainment as a service, you will use your customer base to reach new customers, and your focus is much more about providing ongoing value to your customers….” It’s a fascinating article. You should read it then go download Steam and buy some games.

Games of this and the previous generation have successfully engaged players’ social needs. The engagement is still gameplay yet now there is a social component to it that extends far beyond those nights when you invited a bunch of friends over to play; back when a “multiplayer” game was more than one player and at most two. When you have an audience that doesn’t just include the so-called old-school hardcore gamers, there needs to be new kinds of drivers that take your emotion for a ride.

I was always satisfied in being engaged by the game’s fantasy, its explosions, or its story. I imagine this is how other players feel when they play an MMO, a Facebook distraction or any other game where social interaction is part of the premise.

Something to think about: I’m curious if people who like to play games online for the social aspect also play board games regularly. Do you have any board games ready to be slammed down on the coffee table?