With the recent launch of SegaNet and the announcement of Sony's plans to deliver broadband Internet access with the PlayStation 2, what will happen to console gaming? You see, the Dreamcast will soon be able to be upgraded with an Ethernet adapter, which will allow gamers to connect to the Internet via high-speed DSL or Cable Modem. Exciting in itself, Sega has also promised that for the first time ever, console gamers will be able to play against PC gamers online (Quake III anyone?)!!!

The excitement in this is that hypothetically, a person could network their console with their PC and have a cross-platform LAN party (multiple machines allowing for multiplayer gaming). So, now we look further into the future, namely toward the PS2. The burning question: Will Sony follow in Sega's footsteps and allow multiple PS2s to connect to each other (and to PCs) via an Ethernet hub? Let's hope so!

So now that you have your PS2 networked with your PC, the last questions remains? Will game programmers be insightful enough to allow a PlayStation 2 and Dreamcast to be networked together??? Imagine not only opening up a can o' whoop-ass against all of those PC gamers that think console gaming is a waste of time, but let's explore the possibility of pitting two different consoles against one another!!!

Impossible, you may say. But think about it. The hardware is already in place. And with consoles, hardware is very uniform, as there isn't the huge selection that comes with the territory of the PC world. This will allow for programmers to have a good handle on things. And if game developers want to take the time and do the research, maybe we can expect a future where different platforms of console gaming are virtually indivisible from one another.

Let's just hope that 3rd-party developers hear my cry for one giant gaming network. Soon after the release of PS2 comes both Microsoft's and Nintendo's venture into the world of next-generation console gaming, both with intentions of broadband networking. Only the future will tell, and developers are holding the key in their hands. Now, will they choose to unlock the doors of cross-platform gaming???