Are Videogames Dead?

Keane Ng

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Are Videogames Dead?



With slumping sales and layoffs left and right these days, can we justifiably say that we're in the end times of the games industry? That's the question a two part documentary from industry guru Scott Steinberg is asking.

The myth of the "recession proof" games industry has been thoroughly busted. In recent months we've seen sales slump, studios shut down and every week seems to bring more and more bad news. So is this the end of the games industry?

That's the question at the heart of the season premiere of Players Only, a documentary series headed up by industry guru Video Games Are Dead [http://www.thevideogameexpert.com/]," the two-part premiere carries a melodramatic title, but it's a very even-handed and interesting look at where the business and hobby of videogames is going that's not shy about saying goodbye to the past and looking ahead.

Steinberg interviews plenty of big names over the course of the first episode. Everyone from studio heads like Epic's Mike Capps to journalists like Chris Kohler to analysts like the ubiquitous Michael Pachter show up to share their thoughts on the current "crisis" facing the games industry. Topics touched upon include the problem with big-budget game development, digital distribution and on-demand gaming and more.

A more appropriate title for the episode might be "Video Games Are Dead (As We Know Them)," because the focus of the series seems to be less on proving the industry is in a rut than showing that yeah, things are kinda iffy in terms of the business part right now, but that's as much a part of some serious growing pains as anything else. The games industry is in an interesting transition stage right now, everyone Steinberg talked to seems to agree. Some are drastic about their predictions (Oddworld Inhabitants' Lorne Lanning, who says retail will go the way of the vinyl in five years' time), some are less so. Either way, lots of interesting opinions from genuine authorities here. Check it out.


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Barky13

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Apr 7, 2009
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So video game sales are going down... just like everything else right now. I don't think we have much of a problem.
 

Destal

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Jul 8, 2009
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The economy went to hell and people are suprised that sales slumped a bit? Really? I'm curious to see the conclusions this video makes.
 

Kiutu

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Sep 27, 2008
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I was expecting some kid being stupid, not a news post. Games are the superior form of media and are not going anywhere.
 

HardRockSamurai

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May 28, 2008
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I've watched the video: from what I can tell, the problem seems to be the fact that we moved from console generation to console generation far too quickly, and I have to agree. We really need to focus more on the current generation of gaming, rather than releasing a new line of consoles just because some new technology popped up.

But the gaming industry isn't in any real danger, just the people that work for them.
 

wrecker77

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May 31, 2008
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gaming is at an all time high during the recesion. no it is not going to end and stop ripping of better documentaries names (punks not dead)
 

megapenguinx

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Nothing is truly recession proof. Video games are just more resistant, but every industry has it's up and downs. The recession has finally caught up to us, but it'll pass eventually.
 

ioxles

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Nov 25, 2008
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I work with the markets: everything is going down. Thats the truth, there was a fools rally today, but besides that nothing has changed.

Because of the nature of the slump everything has been affected, sectors of the market previously thought untouchable (like the games industry) have seen a massive falls because of this.

If you really want to know what has happened read this excellent article about the true monsters behind the crash: [link]http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3159732&pagenumber=1[/link]

Thats a full copy of the article THE GREAT AMERICAN BUBBLE MACHINE by Matt Tabbi first published in the Rolling Stone magazine

GOLDMAN AND SACHS YOU ARE EVIL.

(takes off professional hat)

*phew*
 

Jack and Calumon

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Dec 29, 2008
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The video gaming industry hasn't died. Just the FPS genre which died When Duke Sailed off into the sunset and if Modern Warfare 2 convinces me otherwise then I shall laid by a man called lenny.

You heard me.
 

UnravThreads

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Darrkon Fearlock said:
It's going to mean the ending of some companies, but the end of the whole industry? Unlikely.
Plus, the companies worth saving get absorbed into giants like EA, for better or for worse. Some good things have come out of it, e.g. Far Cry 2.

I don't think Video Games are dead or dying. MMOs and "Casual Friendly" consoles are the way it's going. I'd only be concerned about the endless WW2 shooters we get, to be honest.
 

Canadamus Prime

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Jun 17, 2009
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I wouldn't go as far as to say the industry is dead, but the big names really need to re-evaluate their business practices (I'm looking at you Activision).
 

ffxfriek

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their still making crap video games and we keep buying these crap games. so no the industry will never die. it will only flourish more and more as game get. whats the word im lookin for here.....better! thats it. the industry will flourish when the gammes get better not crap
 

Jack and Calumon

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coldalarm said:
Darrkon Fearlock said:
It's going to mean the ending of some companies, but the end of the whole industry? Unlikely.
Some good things have come out of it, e.g. Far Cry 2.
Please Repeat that with a straight face, look me square in the eye and say that you have played farcry 1. Now Say it again.

It was not good. Marmite Factor may apply here.
 

Monshroud

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Jul 29, 2009
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If you think video games are dead then explain the multi-billion dollar success of the Nintendo Wii? How about the blockbuster smashing success of the GTA and Halo franchises. The video game is far from dead. Here in the U.S. we are seeing somewhere around 10% unemployment, which means people don't have $60 to drop on new games every week, so naturally sales are down.

That being said I think the industry is definately changing. With things like WiiWare, XBLA, or hell even the iPhone which can allow one-person development of a game and make money the landscape is changing. You have major game companies shelling out millions of dollars and taking in some cases years to release a single game, this limits what a company can produce each year. This is not like the days of the NES where you only had 10 - 25 people working on a title, in some cases there are over a hundred people working on just one title.

This is also why we are seeing many cases where companies are scared to take a chance on a new IP. They would prefer just creating another sequel to something which was successful in the past. This is why we almost didn't get Brutal Legend. . . Which better rock otherwise those corporate pricks will feel justified in trying to bury it...
 

UnravThreads

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Catkid906 said:
coldalarm said:
Darrkon Fearlock said:
It's going to mean the ending of some companies, but the end of the whole industry? Unlikely.
Some good things have come out of it, e.g. Far Cry 2.
Please Repeat that with a straight face, look me square in the eye and say that you have played farcry 1. Now Say it again.

It was not good. Marmite Factor may apply here.
I have played Far Cry 1. I preferred Far Cry 2.

I also love Marmite.
 

Keldon888

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Apr 25, 2009
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Games are undergoing what the real estate market is, a weeding.

Everyone and their mother was in the real estate market cause it was easy money.
Too many games were coming out, crappy title after crappy title, with crappy little companies popping up to make them.

You need hard times to make people actually work on things, instead of taking the easy way out and putting out copies with numbers on the end of tha name.
 

BonerMacTittyPants

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Aug 3, 2009
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So video game sells are going down, big deal. It's amazing how everytime something goes through worser times news pop out that it's dead.

Games are undead. Now we have EA, Activision, Blizzard with their own merchandise. Everything is mainstream right now, so the quality can be controlled by the big companies. Titles need to make an even bigger profit than before. Look at the gaming industry now - "Mediocre" is the word of the 21th century.