12 Steps To Regain Industry Confidence

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12 Steps To Regain Industry Confidence

Posted by ryuzaki0 on Thursday March 9, 2006 @05:23AM from the take-it-to-them dept.

Next Generation has a piece with some lessons drawn from the Game Marketing Conference. The article offers at 12-step program for restoring the game industry's self-confidence. A good idea, in the wake of Hot Coffee and in the face of angry legislators. From the article: "4. Publicize that history shows we never embrace new media. This is true for silent movies, radio, pulp magazines, comic books and every new music wave including Mozart. Videogames are not the devil incarnate, and not capable of half the deviltry our critics claim for them."

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ews? by tomhudson · 2006-03-09 05:26 · Score: 3, Insightful

Its not like "Hot Coffee" actually hurt the industry. It created the sort of buzz you can't buy. (the only thing worse than bad publicity is no publicity). The people who claimed to be "offended" weren't the target market anyway.
1. Re:ews? by Thad+Boyd · 2006-03-09 05:54 · Score: 3, Interesting
  
  Tell that to Take-Two's shareholders.
2. Re:ews? by voice_of_all_reason · 2006-03-09 05:56 · Score: 4, Funny
  
  Serves them right for putting their money in a pyramid scheme.
1 Step by mabba18 · 2006-03-09 05:27 · Score: 5, Insightful

1. Stop making crappy, overpriced, sequels and even crappier movie based games.

--
The third most important thing I have learned in life: Squeeze anything hard enough and it eventually makes a noise.
1. Re:1 Step by TheAngryMob · 2006-03-09 05:53 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Actually, that just shows they have too much confidence. If they weren't so cocky, they'd be wary of publishing the same crap over and over again.
  
  The problem with crap sequels is that people buy them! Next time junior wants Madden 200X, smack him and then get him a real game!
  
  --
  
  Don't just game, Dungeoneer
Most Important Step. by TripMaster+Monkey · 2006-03-09 05:34 · Score: 4, Insightful

It's a real shame this one came in seventh:
7. Embrace the Constitution.
We have a right in this industry to make and market our product in an unregulated manner. We should be talking about what our rights are. Videogames are part art and part commerce; both parts are protected.
This is just one more facet of our not-so-slowly eroding civil rights.

--
____
~ |rip/\/\aster /\/\onkey
TV ratings are bullshit... by xxxJonBoyxxx · 2006-03-09 05:43 · Score: 2, Insightful

"1. Promote the ratings system. It worked for movies, the recording industry and TV."

The TV ratings are bullshit. During G-rated shows I've watched with my kids I've seen:
1) life on earth wiped out by fires caused by meteors (Disney Channel - "Dinosaur")
2) promotions for other shows that featured naked people screwing in bed (Fox - don't remember the show) 3) graphic decapitations of live animals (Animal Planet - Animals Behaving Badly)
"Evangelize the benefits of videogames. Book: Everything Bad is Good for You, by Stephen Johnson. Videogames not only help children to compete more effectively, they make kids more intelligent."

This may be true for older kids, but all the children I know who started playing before the age of five are borderline retarded. Also, the "compete more effectively" thing seems to overdone - the hardcore online adult gamers I know are complete pansies in real life.
1. Re:TV ratings are bullshit... by chrismcdirty · 2006-03-09 06:09 · Score: 2, Insightful
  
  This may be true for older kids, but all the children I know who started playing before the age of five are borderline retarded.
  
  While I don't disagree with you, you can't blame it entirely on video games. I was playing video games since I was probably 3. I played my dad's Atari 2600, then an NES a few years later. I seem to be functioning fine. Key points, I didn't play them constantly, and I also had other extra-curricular activities, such as reading, baseball, and playing with neighborhood friends. OTOH, I know a 4.5 year old who has never played a video game, but I still can't understand a word he says. Point being, the children you know are probably borderline retarded because of their parenting.
  
  --
  It's like sex, except I'm having it!
Learning from history by Volante3192 · 2006-03-09 05:51 · Score: 5, Insightful

4. Publicize that history shows we never embrace new media.
History also shows that the older generation never learns. Change only comes around when they die out and the rebellious young generation becomes the status quo, only to villify the next new thing.
Wonder what the video game generation will lobby against?
1. Re:Learning from history by Surt · 2006-03-09 06:04 · Score: 2, Funny
  
  Buuuuuutttt Daaaaaad, everyone is getting rna brain parasites!
  
  --
  "Who is the Journal of Quantum Physics going to believe?" --Stephen Hawking
2. Re:Learning from history by Prophet+of+Nixon · 2006-03-09 06:08 · Score: 4, Interesting
  
  Well, to some extent I think the original twitch based videogame generation is lobbying a bit against the new 'MMO' skill-less videogame-as-timesink generation. At least it seems that way to me. I don't even consider those crapfests games. And I know I'm not the only one. I see MMOs going the way of persistent virtual reality worlds if technology allows, which lead to complete reality withdrawl of their users. I would lobby against that. Its not so much that its morally wrong (its not at all so far as I can tell) as it is completely unnatural and unhuman. We'll be reaching a point soon where the old moral standards aren't going to be able to completely explain why some of us feel strongly for or against some things... where the issues that are divisive will not be along lines of morality or law, but rather humanity and reality.
  
  I dunno.
  
  I'm probably nuts.
Re:Creative games? by CashCarSTAR · 2006-03-09 08:12 · Score: 2, Insightful

The problem isn't the industry.

The problem is the people buying the games. The video game industry doesn't stifle creativity , in fact, the gaming industry tries to forcefeed creativity in a lot of ways. But the mainstream buying public doesn't want any of that.