Space Odyssey Lost

I watched Stanley Kubrick's classic 2001:A Space Odyssey last night. I have always enjoyed this film and bought it on DVD a few years ago. But whenever I watch it I can't help but think to myself "when this was made they thought this is what 2001 would look like". The gap between fantasy and the reality couldn't be more depressing.

From the first shots of space travel in the movie your reminded of what might have been and how far we are from achieving anything like that envisioned. We are currently limited to low earth orbit and - as impressive as the International Space Station is - its not a patch on the filmmakers vision.

One of the few areas where reality and fiction are close together is the field of computing. We are tantalisingly close to some form of AI and computers have now become ubiquitous in most homes and in countless gadgets. Having said that I'm not sure if I'd be very happy if my computer was staring at me with HAL's red eye....What has all this got to do with gaming and miniatures I hear you ask. Well not a great deal but Dammit where are the Jet Packs I was promised as a kid! Where are the space planes and holidays on the moon! I feel cheated. And how are we supposed to meet alien races and have interstellar wars if were stuck on plant Earth?