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Game Sales Figures To Improve Throughout Decade
IGN is reporting that according to a recent report, gaming sales figures will contribute significantly to entertainment industry figures through 2009. From the article: "The report cautions that these projections are highly dependent on the success of the next-generation gaming consoles to be introduced by Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. The embedded online capabilities expected in the next-generation consoles as well as the global growth in broadband capabilities should also provide a significant boost to online gaming, according to the PWC report."
Everyone thought gaming was dead in the early '80s and then Nintendo revitalized it with, of all things, the D-Pad.
It wasn't the D-Pad alone, Nintendo's Official Seal of Quality had a lot to do with it, as well. One of the contributing factors to the video game crash in the 80's was that the market was flooded by a lot of awful games, and Nintendo's Seal of Quality and 10NES lockout helped a lot with ensuring customer confidence in the console.
As for game sales figures being expected to improve, I'm extremely skeptical. I honestly think that much of console gaming's future rests on the shoulders of Nintendo. The XBox 360 and PS3 are both going to be extremely expensive systems with very little improvement aside from prettier graphics, and this high price point is going to be a barrier to the more casual gamers. The Revolution's unique control method as well as Nintendo's commitment to keep its hardware affordable will most likely be extremely appealing to the less hardcore who just want something to keep them entertained for short periods at a time.