ESSAY II

Mankind’s legacy will be a cycle of final frontiers, for we as human beings are constantly seeking the keys to the future using tools of the past. And as we wander down the hallway of the future towards the final frontier, another corner leading to another hallway presents itself once we reach the end. In this way, human’s existence is nothing more than an endless series of hallways. Today’s technology touches on subjects that we would have never dreamed possible a hundred years ago, and we are persistently asking ourselves, “how can it get any better?” But here’s the great part about humans and technology; it always does. So the only question to ask is how are we going to use the technology available to advance ourselves into the future? There are many answers to this question, but they all begin with a process of imagination. Two good examples that will help demonstrate this concept are sports and retailtainment. By using the future as an umbrella topic, I will show how these two venues, using the story/game/play continuum, could be improved.

As technology has become more advanced, so have our sports. With the induction of Television sets, mankind has transformed what use to be a spectator’s arena into a family medium. This is but one example of how the future transformed, and in many ways improved, the sports venue. But what about today’s sports? Events such as the Super Bowl attract so much attention that it’s only natural for us to apply future technologies to enhance or improve the game. Perhaps in the future, spectators could influence the “story” by viewing the game from as many angles as they want right from their very home. Perhaps even the game and/or play itself can be manipulated using future technology. For example, viewers at home or at the game could vote on a certain play or certain strategic maneuver that the players will ultimately perform. In this way, it almost becomes like a video game.

Gamers all over the world are beginning to declare video gaming as a legitimate sport. This sport, by its very nature, is subject to an incredible onslaught of future technology for improvement. The sport of video gaming is extremely competitive, but its target audience is limited. Perhaps by using the technology of the future to improve the sport, a greater and more eager audience will arise. By incorporating the physicality needed for conventional sports such as soccer, baseball, football, tennis, exc. with the processing and technical skills of video gaming, a new and more compelling sport might emerge. Maybe instead of using controllers to control a character, gamers could strap on a suit that reads every motion of the body, creating an atmosphere based off of virtual reality. So instead of pushing a joystick forward to move, a professional gamer has to actually move himself. This kind of environment changes all three of the continuums and gives the sport more credibility since it requires more skill.

Retailtainment is all about selling something, from a piece of merchandise to a service. And there is an unlimited amount of ways in which this goal can be achieved. One effective way of marketing, which is presently being used by many major online stores, is to get personal with a potential buyer. Websites such as Amazon.com relay information on possible sales that would seem attractive to a particular client by analyzing their interests from a previous sale and matching it with merchandise that share similar interests. This technology, in a way, brings the costumer and retailer closer together, thus making the customer more susceptible to purchase a vendor’s item. So in the future, retailtainment can be improved by getting even closer to the customer by multiple means. Perhaps a scanner or artificially intelligent companion could keep track of specified items and alert you when supplies are running low. Or maybe your computer gives you feedback and updates on the latest releases of merchandise that interests you, like movies, movie trailers, CD’s, books, exc.

Another field of retailtainment that holds significant importance when it comes to the purchasing power of a costumer is the availability of an item or service. Too often people find it difficult to locate merchandise at a speed that keeps up with today’s society. By shopping online, people can eliminate the hassle of physically shopping themselves, but this leaves room for identity theft and other terrible crimes associated with the internet. Advances in the field of countering the effects of identity theft that guarantee a secure purchase online will be a major advancement in the field of retailtainment, and it will give consumers more purchasing power than ever before.

The future is always around the corner and down the hall. Human beings are constantly searching for new and exciting ways of improving the world around us using the tools we’ve created for ourselves. In the fields of sports and retailtainment, this statement holds true. There are an unlimited amount of possibilities in the advancement of both of these venues, and I for one am excited to see what they are.