Microsoft's Games Get Serious

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Microsoft is certainly the new kid on the block when it comes to serious games, so it might still have some lessons to learn when adapting the ESP platform to have the widest market appeal possible. Scot Shiflett, visual systems team lead in the analysis, simulations, systems engineering, and training business unit at Science Applications International, a San Diego-based technology company with a variety of products ranging from robotic testing devices to storm-warning systems—and another company Microsoft allowed to beta-test ESP—says the software platform is lacking some crucial elements.

Broadening the Horizons

"Right now, ESP meets some FAA requirements in terms of commercial flight simulators. [But some are] not there yet," he says. For instance, ESP doesn't allow designers to create an on-screen display with what's called multichannel synchronization. This means images must match up in real time if shown in different frames onscreen—so there's no chance of pilot confusion. Currently, this is an FAA requirement for commercial airline simulators, Shiflett says—but one that was apparently not addressed in ESP's offerings. Getting the virtual world to match this FAA requirement will only help Microsoft to win more business in that area, he adds.

But Microsoft is already working on version 2.0 of the ESP platform, Boker says. The next round will feature additional types of graphics, including ground and sea environments. Currently, the imagery only features scenes of the earth as seen from above, because it's focused at the aviation industry. Future versions will expand the product's reach, so companies that focus on security, or potentially even other industries, from health care to sales teams in a variety of fields, can also build their own training games.

Buzz is building around ESP, and it's sure to continue. During the Serious Games Summit at the Game Developers Conference in February—the gaming world's must-attend yearly summit—Boker and his team will present the final version of ESP to attendees. This high-profile venue will expose ESP, which will still be relatively fresh off its Jan. 1 launch, to a wider audience than the military-training trade shows where its early stages were previewed. Whether or not ESP takes off and proves to be a lucrative new revenue stream, the Microsoft brand name is sure to gain attention in the serious-games arena among customers and competitors alike. It's already resulting in a more serious look at the growing serious-games market overall.

For more on Microsoft ESP, see BusinessWeek.com's slide show.

Jana is the Innovation Dept. editor for BusinessWeek.