Penny Arcade today announced a panel called Going Back to the Future that will run at PAX East on the 24th of March.
Heading the panel is Russ Bullock and Bryan Ekman, who are respectively the president and creative director for the free to play game MechWarrior Online. Also on the panel is Chris Roberts president of Cloud Imperium Games, who are responsible for Star Citizen. Todd Harris, president of Hi-Rez Studios of Tribes: Ascend fame will be rounding out the panel.
Moderated by Ben Kuchera of Penny Arcade, the panel will discuss the changing video game market. The emerging free to play model will be explored, as will the shifting of games distribution to a digital focus.
Another key focus of the panel will be the revolution occurring in terms of crowd sourcing through sites such as Kickstarter, with both success stories and failures explored. The panel will also discuss the positive impact that crowd sourcing has had on the shackles of more traditional publishers. In relation to this topic, the panel will be discussing player feedback and how this has come to hold great sway over the development of games.
In addition, the panel will be covering the process involved with recreating classic games. One area that will be discussed is the concept of appealing to nostalgia while at the same time drawing in new players, something that contemporary games often struggle with. The panel will also be giving their thoughts on the likelihood of older franchises making a comeback.
For those interested in going to the panel, it will be held in the Arachnid theater from 3:30 to 4:30 PM. The panel will be holding a live Q&A session during the discussion, so this could be a great way to get some valuable insight into the modern game industry.
