I don't think it will be 50 or 100 years. more like 10.

I played tv tennis and spaceys as a kid - why would the rate of change slow to 50 - 100 years?

I dislike mmorpg's because I like to own my fun and not pay and pay and pay

but - a mmorpg developer is most likely to enhance/improve/patch/adapt to player feedback if they still retain ownership over time - its in their best financial interest to.

I buy McSoftware - mainly coz then i own it, but I now expect it to have bugs and I expect to have to download patches and run user community mods and add-ons etc

I can play when I want, whine about it cose I bought it, place it on myself and know that I may never play it again, but happily its there if I ever do.

and so a regular Joe - I can't buy everything so I look for what I think are the good ones - something that will be fun playing. mostly that it games other pl are playing.

rearly do I enjoy a great game of Myst....some pl do..jus not me.

When I look for a game - the repuation of the development company has more and more to do with my choice I make. sure I joined the queue for BF2, but honestly, i think Dice do a goodish job. I could name worse.

the other thing which has amused me often is the whining in forums when a game turns out bad.

Developers often get paid to complete a scope - so if the scope doesn't not include a patch - its more the duty of the commining company to remedy the problem. its indictative of how credible they are if they screw up this in a contract.

basic bugs that are significant to the game role - unforgivable in my view, poor testing and software developement process. indicative of a newer team or cheaper job.

everyway as punters - we make our choices to get the best value for our money, while its the software vendors job to make the most profit.