Casual Games and Social Gaming - More Trends from Casual Connect

Working in games is one of the greatest jobs in the world. I play lots of games, find new games for you and get to go to some of the biggest game events every year.

This year at Casual Connect 2009 I went to many, many meetings and LOTS of seminars. Why? So I can tell you what's going on in games and what you can expect to see in the next year or so.

We covered "Why you should care about Casual Connect" and some of the upcoming gaming trends but there is a bit more and I wanted to give my own views.

1. Social Games - The games you love to play will be where you are.

So you love Peggle? Maybe you love Bejeweled or Ice Breakers? Most likely you will be able to play those games wherever you hang out on the web. Games will be where ever you are -- from your phone to Facebook or MySpace, anywhere you talk with friends, game developers are going to bring their games to you. This is GREAT NEWS! The more places to play the better.

2. Social Gaming causes price wars - More games in more places mean cheaper games.

iPhones here and Facebook there - there are games EVERYWHERE and they are cheap! More and more companies are finding ways to get games into people's hands at lower and lower prices. The days of games always priced at $19.99 are coming to an end. Game sites are competing for your time and money. Games are available in more ways than ever waiting to for you to pick em up and play. Competition equals price wars and cheap entertainment, which makes it a great time to be a consumer.

3. Casual Connect needs to open up - Casual games are about the people and their games.

I have been to a couple of gaming conferences now and there are some notable differences. At video game conferences (like E3) there are PEOPLE EVERYWHERE! Fanboys afficionados, nerds, geeks and their moms congregate and play games with the people who make them. Where is that for the casual gamer? I think Casual Connect could do well by having a public portion, a part of the event where the developers can interact with the game player. An unbelievable community surrounds games it would be a shame to not get them into the party.

Tell me what you think? Am I wrong? Any trends you see in gaming? I'd love to hear your thoughts.