[casual_games] future of shockwave

[Jordan Lee]

We were in a similar situation with our products, where we had to make a 
decision between shockwave and flash.  For us, shockwave turned out to 
not really be an option at all, as our user base is reluctant to install 
any new plugins at all.  If you are going to continue with dhtml 
versions, than you can't really loose by developing alternative 
shockwave versions.  And since you say it would be very straightforward, 
development time/costs shouldn't be a problem either.

The only two problems I can see are:

1. Macromedia discontinuing shockwave/director altogether
2. Development issues resulting from two separate product lines

I can't comment on the first problem, as I don't know if thats likely, 
and the second problem can be minimized by careful planning and re-using 
as many of the game assets as possible.

It would be a much harder decision if you were dropping your current 
products and switching to shockwave.


Jordan Lee,
CTO, 1 Gaming Inc.

BRENT SILBY wrote:
> Thanks for your thoughts,
> Our games target casual browser gamers--currently aiming mostly at the 
> male market. Our target audience will grow as we develop a range of 
> puzzle based games in the future.
>  
> We are thinking of continuing with dhtml but offer shockwave ports of 
> the games. I'd like to continue with dhtml because it is perfect for 
> building widgets for macs and gadgets for the Windows Vista sidebar (I 
> think sidebar gadgets will really take off in the next couple of years).
>  
> The reasoning behind offering shockwave ports of the games is to 
> overcome some browser specific issues (for eg Firefox can't display 
> the content at full speed). Shockwave would also give us the 
> opportunity to offer downloadable versions of the games.
>  
> So to answer your question, we are still in an evaluative stage.
>  
> Cheers,
> Brent.
>
> /DEF-LOGIC
> VIDEOGAMES
> www.def-logic.com <http://www.def-logic.com>/
>
>     ----- Original Message -----
>     *From:* Jordan Lee <mailto:jordan at 1g.com>
>     *To:* IGDA Casual Games SIG Mailing List
>     <mailto:casual_games at igda.org>
>     *Sent:* Saturday, October 22, 2005 8:31 AM
>     *Subject:* Re: [casual_games] future of shockwave
>
>     Which audience are you targeting with your games?  The shockwave
>     installation process tends to agitate some people, so you might
>     have some problems.
>
>     Macromedia isn't really doing anything to push shockwave, or even
>     director in general, so it's future doesn't seem too bright.
>
>     Have you made the decision to switch to shockwave, or are you
>     still evaluating it?
>
>
>     Jordan Lee
>     CTO, 1 Gaming Inc.
>
>
>
>     BRENT SILBY wrote:
>>     Good morning,
>>     We are converting some of our dhtml games to shockwave. The
>>     reason we chose shockwave is because it can handle javascript, so
>>     the conversion is reasonably straightforward--just requiring a
>>     reworking of image handling code etc.
>>      
>>     The purpose of the conversion is partly to overcome some browser
>>     consistency issues with dhtml and partly to open up new
>>     opportunities for licensing.
>>      
>>     My question is this: What is the future of shockwave? I think
>>     that it currently has about a 55% penetration (compared to 97% in
>>     flash). Is this figure predicted to remain static, or will it
>>     rise (or drop) over the coming years.
>>      
>>     I know its difficult to predict future trends, but if anyone can
>>     make a good guess, I'd be interested to know.
>>      
>>     Cheers,
>>     Brent Silby.
>>
>>     /DEF-LOGIC
>>     VIDEOGAMES
>>     www.def-logic.com <http://www.def-logic.com>/
>>
>>     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>     _______________________________________________
>>     Casual_Games mailing list
>>     Casual_Games at igda.org
>>     http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/casual_games
>>       
>
>     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>     _______________________________________________
>     Casual_Games mailing list
>     Casual_Games at igda.org
>     http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/casual_games
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> _______________________________________________
> Casual_Games mailing list
> Casual_Games at igda.org
> http://seven.pairlist.net/mailman/listinfo/casual_games
>   
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://seven.pairlist.net/pipermail/casual_games/attachments/20051021/fee09811/attachment.htm