The Box of Empty Promises

Grimwell.com has a feature up discussing the content selling that publishers like Sony Online and Microsoft have been announcing of late. Xbox Live micro-sales and the purchasing of in-game items in Everquest II may have an adverse affect on the playing field for the average gamer. From the article: "Games are becoming too much about money. Thats a real no brainer statement and I know it. The video gaming industry is where the money is at these days, besting Hollywood and the record industry without even trying. Nor have they really built up a public industry equivalent to the machines that grind out more traditional forms of entertainment. Oh, that's coming, and EA is quickly becoming the MGM of the old film studio system, but the public recognition of the machine that drives the gaming industry is nothing when compared to film, television, and radio."

Comments

How uninsightful

[reidbold]

This article is less informative and insightful than the comments on slashdot regarding the announcements of pay for play content.

Better By Sony

[blunte]

The trade of virtual items has gone on and will continue to go on whether authorized by the game companies or not.

It should be _better_ for the game when companies like Sony actually begin selling in-game items, money, and bonuses.

On games where players themselves are the providers of goods for sale, there is a huge business in "farming" items and coin for resale. So not only do you have players with real money able to buy things (rather than earn them), but you also have the contention for resources due to all the farmers.

If game company provides the virtual goods, that essentially undercuts any player-farmed trade. That is definitely an improvement.

Had this before

[Apreche]

We've had this discussion before. Video games are now something everyone enjoys. And just like movies and music there is a divide between blockbuster crap that makes a shitton of money and real quality stuff that is only for the people who care.

Art house movie theatres, local garage bands, independently published books. That is where the quality is. And now that all the vast consumer sheep buy video games the real money is in selling crap games like this to them. The hardcore gamers who actually give two shits will be playing the independent games and the rare gems like katamari.

This is the kind of market for entertainment that our economic system fosters. Capitalism and IP law encourage the most profitable art, not the highest quality art. Get over it or do something about it.

I guess most are too young to remember...

[rAiNsT0rm]

the original implosion of the videogame industry. The stars are all aligned for a second coming. Counter to what everyone keeps claiming about how it is going to grow and grow, and EA shall rule with small incremental updates to the same titles year after year... this is exactly what caused the bubble to burst last time. Flooded market, too many consoles, crap to good game ratio too high, and greedy companies looking to cash in on the boom... check, check, check, and check.

With all of the losses in hardware and set to grow higher with the next round, no real innovation in the next gen except for possibly the Revolution (ooh, online pay gaming and wireless controller standard!), and this notion that the same tired videogames will continue to sell after GTA 9, NFL 2k28, and the rest of the current market, I don't think so!

Re:I guess most are too young to remember...

[Jarlsberg]

Flooded market, too many consoles, crap to good game ratio too high, and greedy companies looking to cash in on the boom... check, check, check, and check. There's a huge difference between the conditions of the early eighties and today. Back then, you had a vast number of competing platforms (consoles and computers) instead of the select few you have today, and the quality of the games are exponentially greater than any games released in the early eighties. What triggered the crash back then was the extremely bad quality of big titles such as E.T. and Pacman (man those stunk up the place).

We won't see a crash like the early eighties today. However, the big software houses, like E.A., might topple over if they go for incremental changes, micro-payments etc. and people disapprove, but I think not. They will try this -- if it fails, they will try something else. Eventually, hopefully, people will buy games such as Katamari Darcy instead of yet another Madden.

Re:I guess most are too young to remember...

[servognome]

crap to good game ratio too high

Uncheck, the last year has had alot of great titles, moreso than in previous years. Probably a dozen or more big name games that lived up to the hype (or did at least good job)

and this notion that the same tired videogames will continue to sell after GTA 9, NFL 2k28, and the rest of the current market, I don't think so!

The Madden Franchise is like 15 years old, how many Mario and Zelda games have there been?

The environment is different now, you have a generation that has grown up with video games, consoles are now being treated as entertainment platforms rather than game players (ie people in Japan bought PS2s for the DVD funtionality), and multiple and mature genres that cater to many interests (as opposed to almost pure "action" titles available in the past).

The video game industry may decline, but it won't collapse completely.

Re:History repeats itself...

[servognome]

I recall reading the same 'all about money' thing regarding the collectable card games of the last decade or so - MTG. Still, I think most tournaments and most players would stick to straight vanilla games

This brings up a good point, there is a difference between casual and competitive. I had older cards that weren't balanced which I could use in causal play, however, in competitive play those cards were banned, so they were useless.

Microsoft/Sony can sell all the toys they want so long as they are kept out of competitive play. All it will do is change the gameplay experience for those who buy it. Those who buy it will have more fun, but it won't decrease the level of fun for you. In a twitch game like Halo, maybe you could buy extra weapons or vehicles, so long as those things are kept out of PvP there is no imbalance.

What I want to know is

[Acy James Stapp]

If the industry is bigger than Hollywood, where are all the limos, drugs, and groupies? Where's the money at?

Good link at http://grumpygamer.com/5378171
Quote: "The 2004 domestic Video and Computer Game Industry is estimated to be around $10B. This is a slightly misleading figure because it includes the sales of the console machines, in addition to the sales of the software, but we'll go with it.

The domestic US box office is estimated to be around $9B for 2004, and this is where the myth starts to take life. The problem is the movie industry is a lot bigger then just the U.S. box office. DVD sales and rentals for 2003 topped $16B. VHS sales and rentals for 2003 was $6.4B. VHS sales are declining fast, but most of that will just shift over to DVDs, which brings the grand total for non-box office movie sales to over $20B, twice the figure for the entire game industry."