The author of the blog named Antenna thinks he’s found out What Makes Flickr a Success. He suggests that Flickr is simply a MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role-playing game). What an interesting idea, although when I think about it it seems to lack a clear way to “win”, at least in the conventional sense.
Still, this article is quite thought provoking and it makes you wonder how sites that feature content generated by users will be imagined in the future: are we seeing an interesting convergence between games and website functionality here?
If you look at a list of the elements of a successful game, they are all present in flickr: a sense of space to explore, a range of challenges, a range of abilities which can succeed, the need for preparation and skill, a variable feedback system.
