Is The Computer Gaming Industry Finished?

[PvK]

I think back to 1998-1999 when SSI and Microprose were Hasborged. The next year, practically everyone made a RTS game. Megacorps suits looking for hit games based on marketing misunderstandings dominated most of the money being spent on game development - or should I say, on graphics showcases with fragments of old games randomly glued on.

It's a bit depressing how much money and effort is spent developing uninteresting games. Perhaps it's an even worse proportion compared to the amount of uninteresting megacorp dreck churned out in the music, film, and pulp fiction industries. There are very few megacorp game releases that I have any interest in playing. There are practically zero games on consoles that I have any interest in, either.

Megacorps have determined that the most money lies in sales at Walmart etc., to unsophisticated players. Consoles offer concepts that attract suits, like built-in obsolescence and difficulty to pirate.

Megacorp offerings almost never interest me, though. If they all go to consoles only, it'll mainly just mean less distraction by crud.

BTW, Myst is a puzzle, not a game. It only seems like a game for as long as the player doesn't notice he's just watching a bunch of QuickTime animations linked with hot-spots to click on.

PvK

[ November 07, 2003, 22:08: Message edited by: PvK ]