I was listening to a Podcast today (the Gamehounds podcast) and they made the point that, sadly, all enthusiast/hardcore gamers don't matter anymore (and they are enthusiast gamers themselves, they were sad too).
Basically, it boils down to this; as gaming becomes more and more mainsteam, the percentage of the gamer market that is enthusiast drops, because the majority of the new people don't want or simply don't become enthusiast gamers. As such, we are in the minority. Basically, if you are someone who cares enough about gaming to read or post on this forum, if you care enough to read articles and reviews, to research your game buying decisions, or listen to Gaming podcasts, you are a minority (yes, including me).
This is why gaming innovation and invention has slowed down alot lately, and why shovelware is generally more profitable than quality games (Modern Warfare 2 and Halo are expections to this rule - they aren't shovelware, and have enthusiast gamer fans).
Lets compare this to the restaurant market; McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, etc, etc, all these fast food 'restaurants' make money like they are a mint. But their food is of low quality. So, why are they the top of the restaurant market?
* Advertising: They advertise virtually anywhere there are people. I can easily imagine poverty stricken Africans who've not seen food in 2 weeks being able to draw the M symbol for McDonalds.
* Ease of 'use': You don't have to book in advance to eat at McDonalds, Burger King doesn't have a dress code, and KFC doesn't require a knife and fork. These companies have made it so ANYONE can eat there; even men without hands could probably manage it (especially if they have a fork strapped to their wrists).
* A lack of caring from the majority of the target market: Most people who eat at fast food places aren't people who savour the flavours of food in general, typically aren't familar with a wide range of foods, and even if they were, would probably not care enough to go look for them.
Now, if we look again at the Gaming market, and highlight EA vs Activison. EA were the biggest bastards in the industry not long ago; they've improved somewhat, and ok they still are bastards, but are better than they were: they invest in new IPs, they try new things, and are getting better. But as a result of this, EA is taking a hammering finanically. Ok, the recession is a major factor, but the fact remains - when they were at their worst, they were making a fortune, now they aren't the worst, they are making huge loses.
Activison, on the other hand, are the current biggest bastards in the industry. They are hitching up prices, making an infinite number of sequels to Guitar Hero, and generally pumping out the same stuff over and over, jacking up the price every so often.
And yet, Activison are generally doing far, far better than EA. The problem is EA have tried to move more towards catering for us, the enthusaist market, whereas Activison have ignored us and pushed what they can get away with with the general market, and Modern Warfare 2 alone was an giant success for them.
In essence, what I'm basically saying is "Now is the time when the McDonalds, KFC, etc, of the gaming market are going to rise and take over. If we want good games, we'll have to goto the remaining small business restaurants (aka the indies), or order Chinese food (wait, what?)"
Basically, it boils down to this; as gaming becomes more and more mainsteam, the percentage of the gamer market that is enthusiast drops, because the majority of the new people don't want or simply don't become enthusiast gamers. As such, we are in the minority. Basically, if you are someone who cares enough about gaming to read or post on this forum, if you care enough to read articles and reviews, to research your game buying decisions, or listen to Gaming podcasts, you are a minority (yes, including me).
This is why gaming innovation and invention has slowed down alot lately, and why shovelware is generally more profitable than quality games (Modern Warfare 2 and Halo are expections to this rule - they aren't shovelware, and have enthusiast gamer fans).
Lets compare this to the restaurant market; McDonalds, Burger King, KFC, etc, etc, all these fast food 'restaurants' make money like they are a mint. But their food is of low quality. So, why are they the top of the restaurant market?
* Advertising: They advertise virtually anywhere there are people. I can easily imagine poverty stricken Africans who've not seen food in 2 weeks being able to draw the M symbol for McDonalds.
* Ease of 'use': You don't have to book in advance to eat at McDonalds, Burger King doesn't have a dress code, and KFC doesn't require a knife and fork. These companies have made it so ANYONE can eat there; even men without hands could probably manage it (especially if they have a fork strapped to their wrists).
* A lack of caring from the majority of the target market: Most people who eat at fast food places aren't people who savour the flavours of food in general, typically aren't familar with a wide range of foods, and even if they were, would probably not care enough to go look for them.
Now, if we look again at the Gaming market, and highlight EA vs Activison. EA were the biggest bastards in the industry not long ago; they've improved somewhat, and ok they still are bastards, but are better than they were: they invest in new IPs, they try new things, and are getting better. But as a result of this, EA is taking a hammering finanically. Ok, the recession is a major factor, but the fact remains - when they were at their worst, they were making a fortune, now they aren't the worst, they are making huge loses.
Activison, on the other hand, are the current biggest bastards in the industry. They are hitching up prices, making an infinite number of sequels to Guitar Hero, and generally pumping out the same stuff over and over, jacking up the price every so often.
And yet, Activison are generally doing far, far better than EA. The problem is EA have tried to move more towards catering for us, the enthusaist market, whereas Activison have ignored us and pushed what they can get away with with the general market, and Modern Warfare 2 alone was an giant success for them.
In essence, what I'm basically saying is "Now is the time when the McDonalds, KFC, etc, of the gaming market are going to rise and take over. If we want good games, we'll have to goto the remaining small business restaurants (aka the indies), or order Chinese food (wait, what?)"
The massise with always out weigh the few *sighs*