One of the plus points for current generation console gaming is the ease with which gamers can communicate while playing online. For PC gamers, the only way this can be done with friends is to either drop out of the game and open up an instant messenger app, get on the phone or, worse, fiddle about with ancient technology like email. Until now.
Currently in development and funded under the ICT (Information & Communication Technologies) priority of the European Union’s FP7 (Seventh Framework Programme), Community Network Game (CNG) aims to revolutionise the social element of MMO gaming on PCs and bring it kicking and screaming into the 21st Century.
It’s a long way off from completion, but the idea is a mouth-watering concept that, if it comes off, will quickly become a must have for all PC gamers. What the CNG team are aiming to do is develop an app that can sit on top of current and future MMOs that allows a comprehensive list of functionality, including but not limited to live video streaming within a P2P architecture, video editing, text chat between user/friends independent of the games they’re playing, an in-game web browser, personalised character editing, skill matching and self-policing.
What this means in real terms is that CNG aims to develop a one stop application that will allow users to do all manner of things. For example, if you’re stuck on one particular mission and want some help, CNG will allow you to search for a video guide, in-game, and have the tutorial pop up on screen, meaning a player will be able to watch the video and follow it step by step without the need to shrink the game screen to fit the video onto their PC’s screen. What we like most about this concept is that you can call in the help of friends at anytime as long as they’re online and have CNG switched on. You could be right in the thick of it in Guild Wars, knowing that if you had your level 60 mate in your posse right now this battle would be over, and one quick click on a help request button would do it all for you, as the app sends a message to your friend that you need help, in what game you need it, and for what reason. If your friend is a good one, they’ll be right beside you in seconds.
This isn’t the first time an MMO blanket app has been touted – applications like Xfire and PlayXpert, as well as OnLive and Steam, all offer similar functionality, but none of them come close to what CNG are attempting. On top of this, a CNG insider informed us that CNG may well have far wider reaching appeal than just MMO gamers, and could well be adapted for use across a variety of social and multiplayer games in general.
As it is, the project is in its infancy, but CNG are looking for as much input from current gamers as they can get, and as a result have put together an online questionnaire with which to gather as much information as they can from hardcore gamers, with the added bonus of the chance to win a £150 Amazon voucher to boot. To add your opinion, just go to <https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/cnggamer> and get busy. Or, for more information on the project in its entirely, click here<http://www.cng-project.eu/>.
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