I have been trying to foresee the future of tabletop games to foresee the future of Battletech within that context.

I have concluded that tabletop games rely on 2 key factors:

• Table size

• Amount of players

Table size is a socioeconomical factor. A small apartment will not be able to hold a dedicated table to play games, let alone a 6x3 dedicated table. If lucky a small apartment could hold a foldable 6x3 table. Long games, while very entertaining, require to leave a dedicated table for several days. In the best case scenario, portable games will be essential too.

Amount of players is a demographic factor. Long gone is the time when families had 6 kids who would require a game for many players. The big boss to defeat in tabletop gaming is people's schedule. My guess is the future will make 1 or 2 players the most frequent games. It is not that people cannot have many friends, but the problem is to find the right time to gather for long duration games.

Having said that, I see this for Battletech:

• Classic. Hex maps are great. Using 2 maps will require a decent sized table. Problem may be the duration of a game.

• Alpha Strike. While it makes games fast paced for busy people, it requires a bigger table.

• Mechwarrior Destiny. Despite its oversimplified mech scale combat rules, it is the perfect portable game with simple rules. It is so portable that you do not require a tabletop game to play. It could be played in a bus or car trip or even inside a tent in a rainy day in the countryside.

And now the following ideas may be dumb, but there they go anyway.

• It seems to me that items for portability and storage of components will be key.

• For small apartments, my guess is that using vertical space will be key, so I can imagine playing in shelves when a big table is required.

• Portability would require some special player clipboards for card games if cards are used.

• As I see it, more support for Mechwarrior Destiny could be a good idea.

What do you think the future of tabletop will deliver to Battletech? What changes in the economy or demographics could impact Battletech?