About the speculations of the "second gaming crash"

[Mariano]

Some of you problably already see it but here is an interesting video:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDTg8gADBHU


I open this topic because is not the first time that i hear than something like this can happen in a non distance future.
In my opinion this is not going to happen, the gaming industry is just to big and powerfull in this days to crash.


What i think can happen is that some things that we are very used to, may disappear in the future. like consoles and AAA games.
In other words the gaming industry is not going to crash, gamers will...


In a industry where we, the gamers, are no longer majority and most of us dont even know exactly what we want and some publishers take advantage of that releasing a lot of low quality products, i think the way we know the industry, is falling apart.


Thats my opinion, there will be no crash, but a replace of a lot of things (Consoles, AAA games, ETC) that may be seen as a crash for some people, most of those, gamers.

[Happy Cat]

I don't think the industry will crash, it's only changing. I think there will be a lot less AAA games compared to last gen. Publishers can't survive on AAA games alone as Ubisoft and Activision seem to be finding out.

[Mariano]

Agree

[MadeManG74]

Fine with me if Cowadoody and Ass Creed get shitcanned for not selling a gorillion copies each release, I'll stick with my smaller, low budget and targeted games that still get released. I don't see why relatively low budget games/genres with dedicated fanbases will suffer for example.


And even if no new games got released EVER, I have so much of a back-log and games I want to play but don't have yet it could realistically last me the rest of my life anyway.

[George]

I don't think there will be a 'crash' as in there will be no one wanting to do anything game related, but I see it as a gaming change like the arcades experienced during the the 90's. I think 'console games' might be on the way out in the near future and I don't think mobile games will replace it, I think cloud base gaming will.

I think there will be a time where you can just play the latest console game on a streaming service a company, like lets say, Google would offer. Imagine getting your new TV hooked up, you want to play Outrun 2? Well, go google play and SEGA has a copy up. 2 dollars to rent, 15 to own. You click on to own, its in your digital library and you can now start streaming gameplay as you play. I have experienced Onlive and when your on a rock solid connection its pretty damn great... the issue is America and other parts of the world haven't developed their internet enough to make it viable right now and Onlive isn't priced 'just right' for it to take off. 

[JRcade19]

Unlikely. Industry is more likely to repeat past phases. Devs will shutdown, publishers will die if unable to compete ect...

While there is lots of gaming hardware out now as there was in 83, most of the hardware seems to target differing markets, unlike 83, in which all of them were going for that "gamer" demographic.

The consolidation of publishers has kept game releases steady to scarce. In 83, EVERYONE was basically making games and the market was flooded to high hell with them. The mobile market seems like a more likely candidate to crash on that criteria due to the flooded market places, consumer reluctance to purchase games rather than items and the fact that several once large mobile companies are floundering atm.

The console market in particular due to it's curated design is also mostly impervious to the runaway loss of publisher control that infected early 80's gaming as stated above. All in all I just don't see a crash happening. A recession of sorts? Maybe as old publishers/devs fold and new ones arise.

[inthesky]

Were gaming companies in the past as diversified in their business operations as they are now? It's stuff like this that I think will keep some old companies in the game for a long time (namely, Bandai-Namco and Sega). That, and shuttering/consolidating of studios has limited output, which is different from the first crash in question.

In any case, while I would appreciate a radical realignment of priorities from companies and gamers alike (perhaps the only good thing to come of a crash, IMO) I don't think it's happening.

There's an argument to be made that mobile space isn't matured, but is in the process of doing so. If I had to guess, purely mobile game companies (especially ones whose momentum come from one hit, like King/Candy Crush) will flounder while diversified companies like Square who have their hands in portable,console, and handheld will have it easier (and they can leverage existing internal talent easily, and they have popular IPs, etc.) Consumers might become more discriminatory in their purchases on the whole

[Team Andromeda]

We'll not see a crash like what happened in 'America' due to a number of issues , but also there's a massive difference then to now in terms of the storage medium . Printing millions of DVD/BluRays is a hell of a lot cheaper than manufacturing millions of carts , so for that reason too you're not going to see a spectacular crash and there's not going to be corp dull enough these days to print more copies of games than people own the consoles to play them on

I think 'console games' might be on the way out in the near future and I don't think mobile games will replace it, I think cloud base gaming will.

For sure that is the way it will go , but that's still a decade or more away thanks poor broadband infrastructure in a lot of the key markets 

[ROJM]

I don't think there will be a 'crash' as in there will be no one wanting to do anything game related, but I see it as a gaming change like the arcades experienced during the the 90's. I think 'console games' might be on the way out in the near future and I don't think mobile games will replace it, I think cloud base gaming will.

I think there will be a time where you can just play the latest console game on a streaming service a company, like lets say, Google would offer. Imagine getting your new TV hooked up, you want to play Outrun 2? Well, go google play and SEGA has a copy up. 2 dollars to rent, 15 to own. You click on to own, its in your digital library and you can now start streaming gameplay as you play. I have experienced Onlive and when your on a rock solid connection its pretty damn great... the issue is America and other parts of the world haven't developed their internet enough to make it viable right now and Onlive isn't priced 'just right' for it to take off. 

What you just described there is basically the Sega Channel. Sometimes it does take me back how forward Sega was back then...Because streaming game channels is basically the inheritors(well if we include Steam and others....are as close to that thing) to what Sega pioneered all those years ago. Should be an article on that and how it is today...

[Team Andromeda]

to what Sega pioneered all those years ago.

To be fair Intellivsion was the one that started the ball rolling . Where users could download games through the cable online . Amazing to think that was back in the early 80's

[ROJM]

To be fair Intellivsion was the one that started the ball rolling . Where users could download games through the cable online . Amazing to think that was back in the early 80's

Sega made the process work and profitable..much like the Mega CD being the first successful CD rom add for consoles.on

[CrazyT]

Honestly I think it isnt really a crash. People's interest are just different nowadays and its hard to get people's attention with simple marketing or a great game. A lot of great games with potentially massive appeal sell like garbage, but then there's call of duty, gta and the destinies. I'd say maybe gamers have become a bit more shallow in general.

There's many 3rd party games of the likes coming this and next year, but I think there's gonna be a lot less coming out by 2016. A lot of studios are going to decide that its too risky

[Team Andromeda]

Sega made the process work and profitable..much like the Mega CD being the first successful CD rom add for consoles.on

NEC PC -Eng was the 1st add CD Rom add on and in Japan it was very successful. I miss the old days of the likes of NEC, SNK and SEGA in the console market , there were forward thinkers .

A lot of great games with potentially massive appeal sell like garbage, but then there's call of duty, gta and the destinies. I'd say maybe gamers have become a bit more shallow in general

There's no crash, Console sales are on the up . Sure they'll be developers that will go bust and all that, but that always happens . There's still millions of people ready to buy full priced games and for million of people playing games means on their consoles .
 

[ROJM]

NEC PC -Eng was the 1st add CD Rom add on and in Japan it was very successful. I miss the old days of the likes of NEC, SNK and SEGA in the console market , there were forward thinkers .

No TA...as you keep saying Japan doesn't matter...it didn't back then. Sega made it viable and mainstream and got it into the homes of middle america. No doubt...there were steps to get to that point...but Sega was the one that kept it going and got it to the promised land..which is why everyone is enjoying their disc based consoles in their homes today because Sega made it viable to the industry that it could work and it would be brought if done right..which is where Sony took over.. 

[Team Andromeda]

No TA...as you keep saying Japan doesn't matter...it didn't back then

Japan did matter , but that was back in the 80's and 90's when Japan was a key player in the console industry . NEC took the risk and made the jump to the optical media before SEGA even brought out the Mega Drive (never mind the Mega CD).  One can't overlook how NEC led the way on the disc based media