Sid Meier predicts big things ahead for mobile, social

Firaxis's games are as core as they come, but legendary designer Sid Meier thinks we'll soon see non-traditional platforms really shine.

"Mobile is probably a technology we haven't gotten the most out of," Meier told GamesIndustry.

"Mobile games now are five minute quick gaming fixes. When you look at all the technology in a smartphone, the connectivity, the GPS, the camera, there are all sorts of things that could be integrated into a gaming experience that we haven't thought of yet.

"I have a feeling that we will start to explore more of what's possible in the whole space. Who knows what the technology will be. The iPad is a beautiful piece of hardware that does really cool stuff. We're still trying to catch up in terms of game design and how to take advantage of it."

The Civilization creator predicted social gaming is on the cusp of evolving into a broader genre, identifying social networks as a key technology much as CD ROM was.

"In five years we'll have social gaming figured out with different genres. We'll have different kinds of social games and everyone will understand the rules and the interface," he said.

Firaxis is currently working on XCOM: Enemy Unknown, and an expansion for Civilization V is expected in July. Meier was also behind a social game based on the Civilization series, Civ World.