The video game industry is for a gaming crash!

[DragonsLover]

Just read this (this is recent) and tell me what do you think:

the INQUIRER - Article

It's kinda weird... but almost true! :-/

[Jazzem]

I hardly imagine another crash will happen. This fellow is being far too cynical for his own good, and he's ignoring factors like Nintendo's new approach and the dozens of original games that have come out in this generation alone. I can see why he's criticizing the next generation, since prices are going up sorely for the development costs, but the industry is getting far more money then it once was, and there are so many gamers out there... And even then many of them buy these medicore sports games. People are also happily lapping up Nintendo's innovation method, see the success of the DS.

He also made me very angry with this comment...

RPGs have become barely interactive PG-13 movies

So that's why I became hugely addicted to Tales of Symphonia?

[Anatol]

Yeah, I don't think there's going to be another crash like before. There's too much demand for video games, even though the industry does have some problems.

[Lemika]

I wouldn't get too worried. If there's anything like a problem, people tend to blow it out of all proportion.

I really don't think that's likely to happen; for one thing, as long as people keep buying the games, I don't truly see how the industry could 'crash'. Besides, it's not as bad as they make it out to be, from what I know.
As for the RPG thing, I can't really say anything about console RPGs, but I certainly disagree with that comment if applied to PC ones. I'm sure there are some bad RPGs out there -- and other games -- but if you simply don't buy or play them, you should be fine.
Eh. I should probably read the article again before I finish this.

First is the sea of mediocre titles. 90+% of them are crap, pure and simple. The old creativity is utterly dead and gone, that is the one new twist. How many games are not sequels, fight games, drivers, or FPSes?

Yes, there are mediocre titles. Lots of them. However, they are mostly pretty obvious, and easy to avoid. Creativity isn't exactly 'dead and gone' -- there are still plenty of creative games out there. You just have to look a bit harder to find them.
Also, there isn't really anything wrong with sequels or FPSes (I remain silent on the other two, and point out that some FPSes are very good, although the WWII simulators get very tiresome).

One look at the resoundingly mediocre crop of XBox 360 sports games shows there is nothing new under the sun, and they really aren't even trying.

Yes, there are a lot of sucky sports games. For one thing -- that's the XBox 360, not every gaming console. It hardly shows there is nothing new under the sun. I can think of at least one good game that ought to be coming out for that console pretty soon... and I'm sure there are more.

RPGs have become barely interactive PG-13 movies, and I won't even get into the whole crop of disasters that are movie tie-ins. There is one, possibly two titles a year that can be considered innovative, and that is not enough to sustain an industry.

No, they haven't. I wonder if this guy even plays RPGs? I admit the movie tie-ins generally suck. However, I think most people could guess that they will, and if they're die-hard enough fans to buy them anyhow, that's their problem.
And one or two titles a year (even assuming that's all there is) could easily be enough to sustain the industry, especially assuming that lots of other people are buying the other titles. Which, chances are, they are.


I can't really say much more on the subject. For one thing, they mostly appear to be talking about console gaming (which I know very little about, save for reviews), and for another... well, honestly, if the industry does crash, and come back in a few years, I think I could stand waiting a few years. After all, if that happens, it's not as if all of the good games we have now are suddenly going to self-destruct. Gaming would continue -- it's just that there wouldn't be any new games for a while.
I don't seriously believe that it would crash entirely, though. But who knows? Not me.

[Liebatron]

Crash? some how i don't think there will be a crash, especially not in that market anytime soon. I agree though, that X-box has too many racing games and RPGs where you press A and hope it works.

-what they said about NES
"clunky little box" hmph... :
                                                   

[Andi]

A crash? People die to make room for a new generation. Industry does the same. But now? I would describe the current process as "some firms swallow hundreds of other firms". And a lot (not all) new games suck because the big firms (YOU are meant, EA!) only want to make as much $$$ as possible and don't even try to make something new. They just stay to the old stuff to avoid the risk of failing. This results in 200 WW2 shooters/strategy/whatever games that are just as boring as watching grass grow.

But I don't know what new stuff could come. Gothic 3 which I'm really looking forward to play is also a secound sequel. xD Currently you can only make the graphics better because every idea was already used. But do I really need grephics for a ULTRA-BOTTOM-ROCKING-VGA-CARD-20000? I'd prefer more options to do in a game. For example Postal&#B2;. I never saw a games with so many actions to do. Besides aiming you was able to kick, urinate (Ok, urinating doesn't fit into every game. xD), train dogs (to attack people xD), attracting cats (I won't tell you what you could do with them xD), and some more sick suff I don't really want to meantion here^^. HL2 (for some reason called THE game) only had aiming. Ok, the Gravity gun idea was kinda fun but badly done. (I once tried to lock a door with a piece of wood which was IMPOSSIBLE!) The so BRILLIANT AI just sucked ("Be careful Gordon! Snipers!" *BLAM*) und it was too linearic. I really miss kicking in a lot of games. What could be more fun than kicking und carrying stuff around in games to make new solutions (as I said, HL2 had the poorly attempt to make it.) or free your way. ("Stupid corpse! Why did you die right IN the door frame?") We have physics engines. It's not that hard.

Hm. I just HAD the idea of the next generation. "VIRTUAL LIFE!" Get your 3D Glove and do whatever you want in a 3D world like in the real world. The only purpose of these games would be doing things you can't do in the real world. Like even more realistic killing ("Hehe! Can you still breath?"). Then the governments will finally have the proof: "It is possible to learn to kill someone is video games!"

[DragonsLover]

;D I would imagine!

[Anatol]

Wow, Andi. I never knew you were so violent!!

[Andi]

You know so less about me. But in RL I don't harm anyone.

[Timballisto]

Hm....hm........well I don't think the gaming market is in for a crash by any means.  Although I don't think this, I do agree, there isn't much originality out there any more.  I mean, it's still there, but I'll think this a lot "...a lot of these games are starting to look the same."  I mean, the RPG - great idea.  But, if you have too many of them, and most of them fighting based, well...they look not much different from one another.  There are definitely ways to go that remain unexplored (for current genres and for ones not tapped yet).  How we find them and who will find them I don't know, but hopefully someone will come up with some new ideas.  This reminds me of a formula I came up with for games.  Use tool(s) x to overcome obstacle(s) y and get thing (z).  That's basically it, atleast when I look at it.  In Mario 64, you have x being Mario and his moves, and you have y being all the tricky terrain and enemies, and z is the stars.  In lemmings, the x's are the skills, the terrain and traps are the y's, and the exit is the z.  I suppose you could add another element, the kind you find in Zelda and sometimes Mario: pure messing around for the fun of it and not trying to get thing z.  Also, sometimes z is not there - games in which you can't win, but you try for a score as high as possible for example.  If anyone has a different idea go ahead and state it here.  I'll be interested in reading about it.