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Thread: Here we go again...another game recession coming?

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    Default Here we go again...another game recession coming?

    This is not another doom and gloom discussion that points out that people are going to stop playing videogames. The question I want to ask is: Are we currently entering another game recession? It seems that everything now can have a videogame made for it. Heck, even our cell phones have amazing games these days. Sequels are being pumped out faster than ever. I for one see a growing trend that will continue to lower game sales for the forseeable future

    1. Too many sequels. I have been saying this for years, but at some point, people get tired of playing the same type of game

    2. Newer games not as fun as older ones. Sound familiar? I cant tell you how many times I picked up a recent game only to find myself going back to the orginal due to be either easier to play or more fun.

    3. Fewer hardware sales. This generation is slowing down, and the portable market has a potentially smaller market in the future(3DS, VITA)

    4. More people are just not buying new. The amount of games being played is the same or more, but many folks are now going to just play something old, something really old, or just catch up on previous games that have not been played.

    So what do you folks think? Are we headed for a game recession, or are we just fine?
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    We're just fine.

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    Quote Originally Posted by swlovinist View Post
    This is not another doom and gloom discussion that points out that people are going to stop playing videogames. The question I want to ask is: Are we currently entering another game recession? It seems that everything now can have a videogame made for it. Heck, even our cell phones have amazing games these days. Sequels are being pumped out faster than ever. I for one see a growing trend that will continue to lower game sales for the forseeable future

    1. Too many sequels. I have been saying this for years, but at some point, people get tired of playing the same type of game
    Nah. Eventually Call of Duty will start to drop off, but for now, it's selling more copies than ever. Skyrim sold ten million copies, which is something like eight million more than Oblivion and five or six more than Fallout 3. The MMO landscape is changing to micro transaction based free to play stuff, but that's doing very well for companies like Turbine and Aria. When people get tired of that, something else will come along. People got tired of shady mascot platformers, JRPGs and fighting games, each in their turn, and when they did, they didn't stop buying games (on the whole, I mean). They moved on to different and new experiences.

    2. Newer games not as fun as older ones. Sound familiar? I cant tell you how many times I picked up a recent game only to find myself going back to the orginal due to be either easier to play or more fun.
    That is entirely subjective. I love the older stuff too, but I've had more fun with games this generation than any that preceded it. I'm not alone, here: someone is buying all the new fangled games. They're buying a hell of a lot of them too.

    3. Fewer hardware sales. This generation is slowing down, and the portable market has a potentially smaller market in the future(3DS, VITA)
    I can't speak to the lower hardware sales, other than the 360 is still selling tremendously well and the Wii has something like 100 million consoles in homes, but I agree that the 3DS and Vita are probably going to lose out to smart phones and tablets in the long term.

    4. More people are just not buying new. The amount of games being played is the same or more, but many folks are now going to just play something old, something really old, or just catch up on previous games that have not been played.
    Used game sales are certainly up, but plenty of people are buying new stuff. In fact, the number of games that sold upwards of one million copies last year is pretty inspiring. Catherine, the hybrid dating sim block puzzle game, sold 200,00 copies here in the states, and you don't get any weirder and niche than that.

    So what do you folks think? Are we headed for a game recession, or are we just fine?
    No sir. I think we're experiencing the very beginning of a very sharp evolution in how we buy, play, and make games, but the video game market isn't going anywhere; if anything, it's growing. You might not enjoy where it's at right now, and that's perfectly fine, but looking at all the sweet stuff that's coming out, and seeing people I know who are getting into games for the first time because of the Wii or Kinect, from where I'm sitting, it looks pretty good.

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    Boobie in for the win.

    Pretty much /thread IMO.
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    Nothing to see here, move along.

    Gaming as a whole has really never been stronger globally and in North America. Just 'cause systems better suited for another age (3DS/PSVita) aren't selling as well doesn't mean a thing in terms of the overall health of games. The same can be said for just about every other point you made.

    There's so much more going on beyond the traditional industry and it's really exciting in some ways. But it's a shame about the Vita considering it's the nicest piece of gaming tech I've ever held outside a Japanese Saturn controller.
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    Recession/collapse - absolutely not
    Constant industry transformation - absolutely yes

    When the collapse happened in the 80's, there were two main ways to game. You played games on your TV through some box that had some wires on it and a stick, dial or buttons that you pressed in your hand or you went to an arcade to pump quarters into a machine the size of your refrigerator. Now with so many games in so many different places with so many interfaces, it's just a matter of which experience the customers want now.

    The way we think about games is constantly evolving and the companies that comprise the game development market will follow because they have to in order to remain profitable.

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    1. Too many sequels. I have been saying this for years, but at some point, people get tired of playing the same type of game
    I don't have the numbers, but aren't many of the top selling games sequels?

    2. Newer games not as fun as older ones. Sound familiar? I cant tell you how many times I picked up a recent game only to find myself going back to the orginal due to be either easier to play or more fun.
    I assume you are still talking about sequels. While many people share your feelings, I don't think it'll cause a gaming recession. If people grow tired of the sequels, they'll quit buying them, and then the developers will just make something else.

    3. Fewer hardware sales. This generation is slowing down, and the portable market has a potentially smaller market in the future(3DS, VITA)

    Sure it's slowing down, but most people already have one of the modern consoles.

    X-Box 360- Over 65 million sold
    PS3- Over 62 million sold
    Wii- Over 95 million sold

    These number make this the most successful generation of consoles.

    4. More people are just not buying new. The amount of games being played is the same or more, but many folks are now going to just play something old, something really old, or just catch up on previous games that have not been played.
    Modern Warfare 3 had the most successful entertainment launch of all time, and it was only months ago. New is still the way to go.

    So what do you folks think? Are we headed for a game recession, or are we just fine?
    We are just fine.

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    I don't think we have anything to worry about. As others have pointed out, the devices we use to game may change and it's possible one or more of the big three companies could get out of the video game business after this next generation if they continue to lose money, but as the economy turns around, people will start spending more on gaming again. Heck, considering how high unemployment is and how many other low cost entertainment options people have, I'm shocked sales aren't down more significantly this year. The fact that video games have weathered the economic storm as well as they have is a solid indicator to me that the industry is vibrant and growing.

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    I wouldn't mind seeing the market for "AAA" games go down the shitter in favour of cheap arcade style games.

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    Some good things have been brought up in this thread. I dont agree with all of them, but still believe that we are going to have an off year or two ahead at least.

    Things to note:

    Game sales are down 34% from a year ago. The industry this last year shot its load of awesome games, and now comes the "off years". Mark my words, we are going to have some so-so games now enter this year.

    I think that the "success" of the industry is too consolidated. I agree that there are very successful multiple million selling franchises in the industry, with some major franchises milking tired game mechanics with no end in sight. With all the winners have come some terrible losers. A game not selling these days wont hurt you, it will kill your game company.

    As for COD, Call of Duty WILL be the next Guitar Hero. I am not an anti-shooter gamer, as I have all the COD games but the last one. A huge HALO and GOLDENEYE fan as well. It is just at what point does a gamer say NO to an annual shooter skin job?

    On to the transformation topic, I agree that it is happening. What I dont see if that the transformation equaling game sales. Gamers have been spoiled into buying digital copies at much cheaper prices. I dont see this equaling into better sales.

    Also, with the game industry really starting to pressure the used game market, this could actually hurt sales if the ability to purchase a used game becomes unavailable. The Online pass is just the start of thing.

    The next two years, I see the "scraps" and leftovers being released for the current consoles. Sure there will be some decent games coming out, but for the most part it will be just a shadow of this last year...which was amazing I admit.

    I just dont see next gen systems bringing anything great to the equation. I dont really even see the VITA and the 3DS expanding the industry for that matter either.

    I have so many awesome games to still play through that it really does not matter to me either way. I know that some are going to totally disagree, but that is okay. I bring it up for conversation and debate, and not to be wrong or right.
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    Quote Originally Posted by swlovinist View Post
    Game sales are down 34% from a year ago. The industry this last year shot its load of awesome games, and now comes the "off years". Mark my words, we are going to have some so-so games now enter this year.
    Thats not entirely true. That 34% decrease is only from retail, which NPD noted themselves in their actual report. And since digital across all sectors(console, handheld, tablet and phone games) is well over a billion dollars annually I would say that the industry is doing much better than you think. In a few months NPD will release their full report that includes retail and digital figures. That won't cover 100% of everything but it will give us a much clearer picture instead of just going off of retail in-store sales.

    As for COD, Call of Duty WILL be the next Guitar Hero. I am not an anti-shooter gamer, as I have all the COD games but the last one. A huge HALO and GOLDENEYE fan as well. It is just at what point does a gamer say NO to an annual shooter skin job?
    Ever heard of a game called Madden? Apparently it's been out for over 20 years annually. And get this, it actually sells multi-millions of copies every single year. Weird huh?

    Edit: I know Madden isn't a shooter series but it's still an annual series with nothing more than a new coat of paint each time out.
    Last edited by The 1 2 P; 02-16-2012 at 10:31 PM.
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