Every now and then I think about getting into online multiplayer games, but then I come to my senses when I read something like the recent announcement that the original Black & White's multiplayer servers are being shut down after nearly five years of use in order to make way for server space for The Movies's ability to share user-made movies online.

I have a hard time dealing with the idea of purchasing entertainment that has an expiration date, implied or stated, stamped on it.  What becomes of these multiplayer online games once the servers shut down?  Doorstops and coasters, most likely.  That's part of why I love my offline game consoles; fifteen years later they still work and I can still play my old favorites.  I have no desire to fork over fifty dollars for a product that will one day stop working or have features disabled solely because the developer decides to move on to something else.

I know that Black & White is not the first game to have its online abilities turned off and won't completely die off completely without that capability, but it is a reminder to fans of World of Warcraft, EverQuest 2, and so on that all of those fantastic adventures will one day fall victim to the greatest game enemy of all: UNABLE TO FIND CONNECTION.