We've been here before

[migo]

Remember back when every game was a side scrolling platformer? Mario, Sonic, The Simpsons, Castlevania, Metroid, Sunset Riders, Felix The Cat, etc. OK. Good.

Notice how now these types of games are pretty rare? Now instead we have FPS games and third person action games.

That's not going to last forever. Games come in waves, certain genres are really popular, everyone makes them and everyone plays them for a while, and then something new comes out and the games shift.

There's no need to complain about how the industry is dying because everything's a Halo/CoD/GoW clone. There are plenty of games from years ago and plenty of games in the future, and really plenty of games right now that aren't clones of any of those games.

 

[octafish]

Every second indie game is a side-scrolling platformer. Not rare, I'd say they are pretty close to the second most popular game style. However just about all the modern FPS games suck.

 

[Dejanus]

I'm waiting for the day of the ubiquitous vertical scrolling block puzzle RPGs. You call me a madman, but just you wait! You'll wish I was crazy when the last in a line of identical protagonists bravely goes forth, and very occasionally side-to-side, in order to stop the hordes of rectangular invaders descending from above, but never from the right or left!

 

[Twilight_guy]

Remember when all games were adventure games? Then they were all FPS games? Yeah, good times.

For various reasons, FPS games tend to get made more often. For example its a bit easier to make then other games technically (no hero model, guns are relatively simple to program if they are just click, shoot). Plenty of other types of games exist and get made but the inevitable glut of FPS games (that has been going since I was a kid) tends to color people's opinions.

 

[Phlakes]

...Except there were a lot of sidescrollers because of limitations. You basically had three views to choose from- top-down or something close, sidescrolling, and isometric, which was barely used until 16 bit and on.

Naturally, sidescrollers were the easiest to make, so that's what we got until we moved into 3D.

But we probably won't have another jump like that. We're probably stuck with the genres we have right now.

Not that FPS and action games will stay popular, but if they do drop off, it'll be for a completely different reason.

 

[Racecarlock]

We've even been here before with motion and voice control. http://www.gametrailers.com/video/angry-video-screwattack/34014

What, you thought these things were new? They even tried 3d!

 

[migo]

Every second indie game is a side-scrolling platformer. Not rare, I'd say they are pretty close to the second most popular game style. However just about all the modern FPS games suck.

3rd person adventure is definitely way more popular than sidescrolling platformers. RPGs too. Then there's casual and puzzle games. You might have an argument for 6th most popular game style.