The promise of OnLive, which has been shown to work in hands-on demo sessions experienced by Kotaku editors, is that it would enable high-def gaming on any TV or laptop capable of receiving a broadband signal, thanks to patented technology and cloud computing.

OnLive could someday make the need to own a home console obsolete.

Dave Perry said that Gaikai, the streaming Dutch technology group that he is a co-founder of, is not simply a me-too.

In a video on his site today, he showed how it worked, streaming games such as Spore and an emulated Mario Kart 64 to his home PC. Video games — or applications like PhotoShop — are accessed in a browser window as if the user was accessing programs running off their own computer. All the processing happens elsewhere, on remote services, but it feels live and local.

But isn't that, essentially OnLive?

"OnLive is going after the living room audience," Perry said. "They plan to fight with Sony/Microsoft/Nintendo all at the same time. They also have to buy every player through marketing, and if they do well, they just steal some market share from Nintendo/Sony or Microsoft. There's no big paradigm change."

What Perry wants to do with Gaikai is provide it to publishers to make their games available to any of those publishers' customers through a web browser. That, he said, would change things by freeing games from the narrow pipelines of consoles and high-end PCs they are currently available through.

"When the iPhone made access to applications and games really easy, it changed everything, they generated a billion downloads on a phone. We plan to do the same for professional games, but online. The iPhone takes two taps (download, wait to install and play.) We are just one click and Spore or Photoshop pops up. Publishers like this idea. So our positioning allows us to help Nintendo / Sony / Microsoft reach out and draw in new audiences, where OnLive will never get 1st Party titles."

So an EA or a Nintendo would use it to let people play Spore or Mario Kart from any computer with a strong enough Internet connection (Perry's claiming that 1mbps works for "most games.") The resolution that the game would play at would be at the publisher's discretion, though Perry says HD is an option. Perry also said that multiplayer is possible and has been tested successfully already.

The motivation for the service, in Perry's words, is "to make games available everywhere, with just one click." He said that casinos, doctors and the military have all inquired but that he primarily wants this service accessible for gamers.

Here's the vision he foresees:

"The convenience we offer really matters. How many YouTube videos would you watch if you had to keep going to YouTube.com and search for them? Or how many would you watch if you had to register before playing each one. How many would you play if you had to download the entire video before you play? This is stuff our industry expects you to do, but that has to end if we want to grow our games virally like Youtube has done. It's changed how we interact with video on the web. Gaikai can help publishers & developers change the way people discover their games."

Perry says the video posted today is just the first glimpse of the service. He's planning speeches this month and next to reveal more of the plans for Gaikai.

With OnLive and Gaikai in development, gaming's future just might be in the clouds.

I've checked with Perry about when he hopes Gaikai will be available for gamers and will update this story with any added info.

[UPDATE: Perry wants beta testers. In California fir a closed beta, then in all of the US for an open beta and launch. Then it's coming to Europe. Interested parties can register via Gaikai.com. Perry says those interested should mention Kotaku. We hope he won't hold that against you.]

In addition to starring in a few video games, Michael Jackson appeared at the first E3 more than a decade ago. GTTV's Geoff Keighley recalled the event to Kotaku:

"Michael showed up at the first PlayStation E3 party in 1995 as a surprise guest of Mickey Schulhof, the then-CEO of Sony. There were rumors he was going to perform, but as far as I recall he never actually took the stage. Instead, he walked around the party and spent most of his time holed up inside the ice cream parlor on the backlot. I seem to recall he was also caught sitting down and playing the arcade version of the original Ridge Racer that was set up at the party."

Electric Playground host Victor Lucas was also at that E3 and shared his memory with Kotaku:

"He was at the first ever E3 Sony party in 1995 and it was at one of their studio backlots so it was set against a fake small town street with fake little shops. There were games in some of the fake shops, some PlayStation standees and some arcade machines. [Former Sony Computer Entertainment president] Steve Race had given a short speech thanking everyone for coming and how exciting it was for Sony to be entering this new era for their business.

"A band started playing on a stage after that, and I remember rumors being whispered that Michael Jackson was going to perform. He didn't, but I remember a small crowd had gathered around one of the fake shops, peering into the windows. I took a look inside and there he was sitting down and it looked like he was being catered to by at least a half dozen people in his entourage. Eventually he stood up and started playing a game machine in that room. I remember people saying he wasn't going to come out of there, so I moved on and walked around the rest of the party.

"The Sony party that year was big but much smaller than they grew to be over subsequent years at E3, so it didn't take long to circle the party and eventually get back to where Jackson was. Only, when I got back, he wasn't in the fake shop anymore, so I turned the fake street corner and almost walked into him and his entourage as they walked down the street. It was weird. It was like a force field had been built around them and a circle of people had given Michael Jackson 20 feet of space as they followed him. He walked down the fake street, stopping now and then to play a game or two. He didn't perform. All he did was walk around and check out games and wave, smile and say hello to people.

"We were all pretty blown away—a bunch of developers and brand new game journalists were in the presence of pop culture royalty. And as I left the party, collecting my PlayStation Polygon-Man t-shirt and still buzzing about being mere feet away from Michael Jackson, one of the most famous people the world has ever known, I remember thinking how big the videogame industry was already and wondering how big it was going to grow..."

Game designer Dave Perry had a more personal memory, one he shared on his blog today. Perry recounts a story of visits to the star's home at Neverland Ranch, Jackson's playful behavior around his kids and... an egg fight.

Michael Jackson was a gamer, he wanted me to come up to Neverland and talk to him about games. The first time I went up and after walking in the door he handed me a black plastic trash bag and told me to put it on. I was like, "HUH?" He started putting his trash bag on. Then one of his staff walked in with a giant PILE of eggs. A bunch of his friends came in (wearing the requisite black trash bags) and we all went into the garden area and started a giant egg fight. I threw my first egg FULL FORCE (I have long arms), then the world went into bullet-time, I thought, "Oh No!", as I saw the egg flying full speed towards his son's face, and I noticed they were filming everything for Michael's home video collection (so they'd know who did it!) What a great start to make his son cry. Luckily, it whizzed right by his ear missing him by millimeters. I then went into "Here, take this" as I performed the lamest egg throws you've ever seen. So everyone survived, and I was invited to stay.

There's much more from Perry about his view of a Michael Jackson he very much respected over at Perry's blog.

Jackson was a historic and controversial figure, sure to be missed by many. While his connections to the gaming industry were few compared to his influences on music and television, his influence has registered throughout entertainment.

11:08 AM : Play that Funky Music White Boy is playing on the PA, and a small crowd has gathered for the Q&A that was supposed to start 8 minutes ago. Oh, here we go! Jamil and Perry take the stage!

Jamil is talking about how awesome Dave Perry is. I tend to agree. We are pleased an honored! Applause!

First question...are you the tallest developer in the industry? Yes, yes he is. Even taller than Phil Harrison. He gets the same thing I did in high school. Everyone wanted him for sports. I feel his pain.

Perry is talking about the gaming scene in Northern Ireland in the 80's. Programming in basic, self-publishing, creating booklets. Games in plastic bags on a cassette tape. Those were the days.

He programmed on a Sinclair ZX81. You needed imagination to play games back then. The industry was revolutionized when the 16k memory module came out. He's showing picture of old games. I'll show you those a bit later.

Jamil's next question: Was there a peer group you could work with?

They would have little meets. Perry got his start handing out stickers dressed up like a creepy cartoon character at trade shows.

Haha! Early tries at photorealism. Taking photos, scanning them and editing them.

What games and developers inspired you? Ooo, good question.

He looked up to Peter Molyneux, Chris and Tim Stamford from Rare.

What could you earn during the early days of game development?

Early jobs paid nearly nothing. Starting at nothing, but once a game succeeded your salary would quickly increase.

He wrote a platformer for the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles for the PC, Commodore and AMiga in a week back then.

He moved to the US when Virgin Games needed him to make a McDonald's game called Mick & Mack's Global Gladiators for the Genesis. LOL. McDonald's hated it at first. It won game of the year, but the company was mad that you couldn't buy burgers in the game.

Talking about the Richard Branson parachuting manuever into the press conference for Disney's Aladdin game, one of the best Disney games ever incidentally.

Jamil: How did you get into a position that you could create your own games within a big company like Virgin?

Once you hit a few out of the park they'll pretty much do anything you ask them to.

On Messiah: "We expected hardcore gamers to buy a game with a crying baby on the box."

Yay Earthworm Jim! Proof that you don't have to be big to get a lot done. Toys, cartoons, Taco Bell toys, No fire extinguishers though.

Hello Kitty is a good place to go for merchandising ideas.

While pitching Earthworm Jim to MGM Universal, studio head Sid Sheinberg came into the room yelling at people, and then told Perry to pitch. Halfway through the pitch Sheinberg interrupted. "This is confidential.Pigs. Pigs are gonna be big. There's been dogs, there's been cats. Pigs. Continue." He went on to create Babe. A visionary!

How do you get a cartoon for Earthworm Jim without a toy line in place, and vice versa?

He invited the head of the toy company and cartoon company out to dinner, where they looked eachother in the eye and said, "I'll do it if you do it."

"Food is the key to everything."

MDK. The publisher didn't see it. It was the first no they got from a publisher. They had built their whole pitch on the innovative sniper helmet the game featured.

They took the same storyboards they used for the initial pitched and created a video. They loved it so much they wanted a toy line and a tv SHOW.

"If you have a great game idea don't write about it...show it"

On the Matrix. Jamil is asking him why there was no game for the first film.They were working on sacrifice. He met with the Wachowskis and all they had to demonstrate bullet time was a burning barrel. They passed on it.

The ESRB wasn't going to give Enter the Matrix a teen rating due to the kiss between two female characters. Shiny's response?

"It's not two women kissing, it's two computer programs kissing."

The ESRB bought it. Hilarious.

Now they are discussing the Top Secret MMO racing game project. How the community took over. They created forums, a wiki, and just basically took over the whole process. It's exciting because he never knows what they are going to do next.

They've come up with very original ideas. Commentator mode, where one player acts as a color commentary during the races for instance. People would fight for a chance to MC the big races. The idea was nothing a traditional game development team would have come up with.

The design stage is done, and the development phase is beginning. "I don't expect them to go kick Tim Sweeny's ass." I am sure Tim is relieved.

Announcing a deal with Mod Center to deliver free development tools to the Top Secret community. Acclaim will pay for any game engine in the world for whoever wins the Top Secret competition. Wow.

The winner gets an industry standard publishing deal and $100,000 cash as their first royalty. They are giving young developers a chance.

The project will also be an iinteresting viral marketing test, as the community will be telling their friends and so on and so on.

The game will ultimately be free to play. Perry went to the biggest publisher in China to explore the microtransaction / play for free model. Showing slides of his trip.

"The old game model we used to use is archaic." The microtransaction model brings in much more money than the standard $49.99 he used to charge for PC games. "The free to play model works fantastic in the US, even better than China." Combined with in-game advertising it is a really good model for the states.

If a Kojima-level personality from China comes to the US and starts delivering games of that quality from China it will have an amazing impact on the gaming industry here. Disruptive innovation, like the digital camera changing Polaroid's business.

The Wiimote is truly disruptive. Nintendo has disrupted our industry. None of Perry's favorite games or games he is looking for are on the Wii. When the great games come out for the 360 and PS3, people aren't going to be content bowling with their Wiimote.

He is talking about the game Plague that he wanted to make, that would have taken $17 million to create. It made him start to worry about how games are created and sold.In China he found free fully-funded MMO teams. He is developing 6 MMOs now, three of which are unannounced.

Until the PS3 is everywhere he can't see himself creating a big budget game.

Added some pics to the bottom here.

Awww, we are out of time. That was much more entertaining than I thought it would be. Thanks for sticking with me on this, my very first liveblog!

Now in "open beta" the DDR-esque MMO let's players create custom avatars—choose from freakish ladies or femme gents—and virtually dance by rhythmic keyboard input or via a USB dance pad.

It's free, but Acclaim will be raking in the dollars and cents with microtransactions in the form of downloadable clothing and accessories. I'd participate, but it would only take time away from me blessing the world's dance floors and their patrons with my God-given dance talents. Sorry, DANCE! Online players... you'll have to wait until you're 21 to catch me at a club.

Full press release after the jump. Michael McWhertor

Dance! Online [Acclaim]

ACCLAIM GAMES LAUNCHES DANCE! ONLINE GAME FEATURING MUSIC AND ARTISTS FROM WARNER MUSIC GROUP

Game Features Online Participation by Music Artists

Los Angeles and New York, April 12, 2007 - Acclaim Games today announced the launch of the online game DANCE! Online, a free-to-play multiplayer online dancing game. In an industry first, DANCE! Online will feature top talent and master recordings from Warner Music Group Corp. (NYSE: WMG), making it the first free multiplayer online dance game to feature major label content and artists. With the start of "Open Beta" testing this week, thousands of U.S. PC users will have the opportunity to dance virtually to songs from select WMG artists.

"This is by far the closest collaboration any major music label has ever had with an online game" said Howard Marks, CEO of Acclaim Games.

"DANCE! Online has started the music based game revolution which has captured the minds of hundreds of millions of players in Asia", said David Perry, the game's director and industry superstar designer.

In making the announcement, George White, Senior Vice President, Strategy and Product Development, WMG said, "With the enormous popularity of dance-based games in Asia and other parts of the world, we're excited that our artists and music have the opportunity to reach the millions of fans who are participating in this growing phenomenon."

In another video game industry first, Atlantic Records recording artist Cupid, with his hit single "Cupid Shuffle," will make a personal virtual appearance in the game. Other artist-related announcements will follow where the artists will create their own avatar and play the game live online and chat with fans. The game will feature some of the latest music from select artists and personalized virtual items including artist-branded clothing, accessories and more. Upon the game's full launch later this year, players can compete to win autographed merchandise and other artist-branded products.

Players of DANCE! Online can create their own avatar and use either the keyboard or most PC compatible dance pads to match the beat of the song and to make their character perform choreographed dance steps. The game features up to 6 players dancing together and includes a variety of game modes and options. Players will be able to purchase optional items from the game shop to customize their virtual characters with clothing and various accessories. Players can also purchase "song packs" to dance to even more songs from WMG's catalog. The game is free and will be supported by in-game advertising provided by IGA Worldwide.

DANCE! Online is directed by video game industry veteran David Perry. The game is in Beta testing beginning this week, which means that anyone who registers for an account can immediately play for free. For more information, please visit www.acclaim.com.

###

About Warner Music Group

Warner Music Group became the only stand-alone music company to be publicly traded in the United States in May 2005. With its broad roster of new stars and legendary artists, Warner Music Group is home to a collection of the best-known record labels in the music industry including Asylum, Atlantic, Bad Boy, Cordless, East West, Elektra, Lava, Maverick, Nonesuch, Reprise, Rhino, Roadrunner, Rykodisc, Sire, Warner Bros. and Word. Warner Music International, a leading company in national and international repertoire, operates through numerous international affiliates and licensees in more than 50 countries. Warner Music Group also includes Warner/Chappell Music, one of the world's leading music publishers, with a catalog of more than one million copyrights worldwide.

About Acclaim Games

Based in Beverly Hills, California, Acclaim Games is a revolutionary company with over 1 million registered players worldwide. CEO Howard Marks, a cofounder of Activision, has established Acclaim as one of America's top online game brands. Today, Acclaim Games offers only the finest online games with a focus on accessibility, playability and most importantly fun. Acclaim's free massively multiplayer games include BOTS!! (futuristic robot fighting action game), 9Dragons (Martial Arts MMORPG), 2Moons (Extreme Action MMORPG), DANCE! Online (hit music dancing game), and Top Secret (a fan developed online game). To learn more, please visit www.acclaim.com.

About David Perry

David Perry - CEO of Gameconsultants Inc. and Acclaim's Chief Creative Officer is a 24-year video game industry veteran, Perry launched his professional career at just 15 years of age by writing video game programming books in his native Northern Ireland. Since then, Perry/Shiny has developed numerous games (including The Terminator, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mc Donald's Global Gladiators, 7-Up's Cool Spot, Disney's Aladdin, Earthworm Jim, MDK, Sacrifice etc.) his most recent games have sold over $300M, based on the Matrix franchise. Perry sits on the Advisory Boards of the Game Developers Conference, the Hollywood and Games Conference, the Gamers Expo & Westwood College. He a regular speaker at key industry events like E3, and has represented the video game industry speaking at conferences like TED.

As a gay albino African-Irishman, you just know I have rhythm. If you've ever read Voltaire, you might recall Candide's description of what happened when Cunegonde stripped naked: every bystander fell to the ground in epileptic seizures of ecstasy. Well, that doesn't happen when I expose my mottled, creepy pink flesh, but when I get naked and hit the DDR mat? Everyone becomes my ho.

So excitement! Shiny Founder Dave Perry has announced that he is directing game development on a game that finally meshes my penchant for dance with my inherent catassery: Dance!, a DDR MMOG.

Acclaim's press release focuses on the aesthetic aspects of the player's appearance in DANCE!, promising players will have a chance to create their own unique dancer through variable styles, facial features, clothing and accessories. It's certainly an interesting approach to a game type that's found difficulty moving outside the hack 'n flash of orcs and elves.

Get it hooked up to the Live Vision cam and see me become the Leeroy Jenkins of Dance!. Florian Eckhardt

Dave Perry Overseeing a ... Dance MMO? [1UP]