A Brief History
It was 2003; little did I know, I was about to participate in a second screen experience for the first time. An idea that never existed in gaming besides a poor attempt with the Sega Dreamcast. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles was about to launch on the Nintendo GameCube. I was quite excited as I am a huge nerd, but this was the first multiplayer Final Fantasy game ever. This four player experience had my closest friends and me purchasing GameBoy Advances, a great upsell. The reward, each player that used their GameBoy as a controller received a unique feature on their Second Screen. One player could see the map, one could see the monsters, another could see the treasure chests, and finally, the fourth player could see the information of any enemies that we might encounter on our journey. Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles is yet another perfect example of how gaming has shaped technology.
Virtual Events
While my knowledge and experience with second screen technology are mostly relevant to gaming and entertainment, not including virtual events would be negligent. I have participated in and hosted a wide range of virtual events; one thing I know for certain is that you must keep the audience engaged. Using a second screen experience can provide attendees with the slideshow, polls, real-time Q&A, quizzes, and the ability to take notes. Most importantly, it provides us with the analytics we need to measure audience engagement and improve our virtual events accordingly.
A Great Execution
My familiarity with second screen devices & experiences is vast, but I had not seen many executions that had inspired me until the summer of 2012. The company behind Borderlands 2, an award-winning video game for the Playstation 3, XBOX 360, and PC, released a mobile application for iOS and Android devices. This companion application was a real-time, interactive map. With this application, not only could players see the map without having to interrupt gameplay, but their second screen displayed their player's location in real-time, missions, goals, and any other information that might aid in their progression. It was awe-inspiring and a excellent use of technology that was still very new.
Tremor Video
I have had the pleasure of working with many different connected TV advertisers, but Tremor Video was by far the most impressive. They use sound recognition technology to deliver you a targeted, second screen advertisement based on what you're watching. I often hear media partners and vendors talk about their ability to target consumers, but it is typically underwhelming or over-promising; this was not the case with Tremor Video.
XBOX SmartGlass
SmartGlass has been around for a while now, but it has made significant strides. The integration alone is unmatched; it works with the XBOX 360, the XBOX ONE, Windows tablets, Android, and iOS devices. Users can use their second screen as a controller, or their friend can use it to help guide them through a race track or watch them play from a different perspective. I believe that Microsoft/XBOX is winning the second screen battle against Nintendo and Sony/Playstation.
Playstation Vita
The Playstation Vita had a rough launch; as an early-adopter, I was pretty disappointed. It had a touch screen, a rear touchpad, a beautiful HD display, but most importantly, I finally had a handheld system with native, dual-analog sticks. The biggest problem with the Vita, it didn't have any decent games for years. You could always play your games remotely through the Playstation 3, but things changed for the Vita with the Playstation 4 launch. The Vita could handle the Playstation 4 graphics and stream its games. It could be used as a controller or a companion device for specific titles. Eventually, they started to release award-winning games. Unfortunately, the Vita was discontinued by Sony in March of 2019.
Nintendo Wii U
The Wii U was the first video game system to let you use a tablet as a controller; in fact, a tablet is the controller. You can even unplug the tablet and take your game with you. While it was very cool, Nintendo was late to the HD market, and so far, the system has been unsuccessful. Luckily, their handheld system, the Nintendo 3DS, is keeping them out of financial trouble. The 3DS is a remarkable system that utilizes 3D without the need for glasses. Finally, Nintendo released an excellent HD console/tablet hybrid, the Nintendo Switch, and it was one of the fastest-selling consoles ever. Unlike the Wii U, it did not provide second screen experiences.
