At first glance, GoCrossCampus looks like a simple social game but it’s much more than that. GXC puts an amazing social networking aspect into the mix with a heavy emphasis on connecting with your real-life connections. The game is set on a map of your campus, school or location and the goal is to take over as many properties on campus as possible. How do you do that? Brute force. You must “attack in a certain direction” with a bunch of your teammates for effectiveness. By encouraging real-life communication, GoCrossCampus is setting new standards in multiplayer online gaming. Show everyone in the rival dorm who’s boss and conquer your world. Think about it - a business can utilize this kind of gaming to build morale - (”HR took over the North Tower again! The accountants must strike at 12″). This is powerful stuff.
GoCrossCampus was created by four Yale upperclassmen. In fact, one of my closest friends is chummy with one of the founders of GXC. Innovative idea nonetheless. However, even though the game is fueled by our innate human sense of competition, I think the creators of GoCrossCampus have to do a lot to ensure the retention of their gamers. They have to find a way to ensure that their gamers don’t get bored. What if a certain militia is stronger than its opposition just because of sheer user size? “Armies” must have different pathways to take down their competition without it just being dependent on the group’s memberbase. Perhaps a integration as a Facebook application could help boost its popularity.
Google has expressed interest in the company, we’ll see what develops.
