Of course, games are taking over the world. The curious details lie in the how. For games to be successful at conquering all facets of human endeavor, they must be fun, and productive. So where will that productivity come from? The term is collective intelligence, that is, a bunch of people hammering at a problem will likely solve that problem much quicker than one or two people. Solutions and possible solutions spread through the group with frightening speed. Collective intelligence is why no DRM scheme can withstand contact with the internet, and why scientific research into protein folding just got a lot more interesting. Forbes has the story.
I hear there are already some internet subcultures taking advantage of the collective intelligence effect. Wish I could remember their name. It’s almost like they’re anonymous or something.