2008 was a fantastic and eventful year for me. I started a new job. I moved to a new city. I got engaged.

But the best part was that I got to experience one of the better years of sports gaming in recent memory, mainly because of the introduction of NCAA Football 09’s Online Dynasty mode. (Here is to hoping my fiancée does not actually read my articles…)

Although not a completely new concept, NCAA 09’s Online Dynasty provided a glimpse into a probable future of sports gaming. The dynasty/franchise has been highly buzz-worthy on the online front this year and looks to expand into other titles in 2009.

So, is it fair to call the online dynasty/franchise the future of sports gaming? Maybe. Let us discuss…

Sign of the Times

Since Al Gore invented the Internet, the world has become a whole hell of a lot smaller. From Facebook/MySpace to online message-board communities, it has become abundantly clear that the most significant use of online technology is bringing people together. Whether the focal point is sports, politics, movies or having life’s questions answered by a ninja, the Internet has done a bang-up job of congregating us around our interests, quirks and sick senses of humor.

Connecting sports gamers in friendly (and sometimes not so friendly) competition was a painfully obvious next step for developers. In general, sports gamers crave human competition, and online matchmaking systems made this more accessible than ever before.

Now, we have reached the next watershed event in online sports gaming: organization.

Pounding the crap out of total strangers was stupendous for a while, but it had a shelf-life, and not a very long one. It satisfied that primal urge to compete and dominate, but the thrill was merely temporary for many. The real satisfaction of the championship season was generally a solo affair, carried out in offline franchises and dynasties. Only those who lived amongst fellow gamers could reap the benefits of beating their fellow man for the title season after season.

The online franchise/dynasty mode has now brought this special sort of gratification to the masses. It is about time.

Online Dynasty allows for some unique gameplay experiences overall.

Thanks for the Memories

For those of us who have grown up playing certain sports titles, the online franchise/dynasty poses the possibility of rekindling old rivalries. It has succeeded in re-creating the magic that such games once provided during "heavy" 12-hour-a-week school schedules -- a magic that has long since been killed by the drudgery of the real-world work week.

Some of my finest memories from college-hood were times spent with friends in front of a console-laden television set, fighting through the NHL playoffs or trying to land that top recruiting class after an exhausting national championship match-up. These games -- and their franchise/dynasty modes -- hold a special place in a lot of our hearts. They were integral parts of our lives during a time when life seemed a bit more wide-open, and dare I say, a bit more fun -- or at least fun-centered. As life has moved on, the games remained, but the lack of that competition left an agonizing void.

I can honestly say, without a moment’s hesitation, that this year has been the most fun I have had playing my favorite game (NCAA Football) in four years. The Online Dynasty mode has given the series legs that it otherwise may not have had.

Commitment Issues

I cannot say with 100 percent certainty that online dynasty/franchise is entirely the future of sports gaming. It is a fundamental piece of the puzzle for certain, but not the panacea for all sports titles.

The main obstacle to conquer is the length of a single season. Football games have an immediate edge because of the short season. Having only a 12-16 game regular season and 1-4 game postseason, football games require the least amount of time when compared to the other major sports games. Soccer and college hoops fall in an intermediate level, while the other big three (hockey, NBA basketball, and baseball) franchises require a commitment that would rival most marriages.

Maintaining interest is a key component when it comes to the longevity of a game. Even though the in-depth human competition offered by the online franchise can bolster excitement and motivation, 82 or 162 games is still a monumental chunk of time. Factor in the dreaded waiting-for-others-to-play-their-game problem, and the cons seem to outweigh the pros.

Tailor-Made

I have spoken mostly about the NCAA Online Dynasty mode, namely because it has become the Holy Grail of sports game modes to me. In truth, it is not even the most highly regarded online mode of this year.

NHL 09’s EASHL has been a tremendous breakthrough for online competition this year. The EASHL offers a unique and somewhat unexpected take on a classic sports game, effectively remaking it for the future of the series.

This mode is a perfect example of a game that would probably struggle with gamer commitment in the franchise/dynasty department, but is still flourishing in the online realm because of a little creative thinking. Perhaps in the future, we will see NBA 2K9’s Team Up mode evolve into a more refined online league system; or maybe baseball titles will begin to offer a position-by-position online league system. Who knows? Maybe even wrestling games will take note and begin transitioning to some sort of "online federation" mode.

The larger point here is this: Online franchise/dynasty is the wave of the future, but it has its limits. While it will be the high point in NCAA Football (and likely Madden) for years, modes must be tweaked and created to maintain longevity for some of those sports where seasons might become a bit mundane.