I could post a wall of text but I'm sure the rest of you guys would prefer a video explaining the situation.

Yeah it's another rant on youtube that goes on for 10 minutes but it does the work for me and it got me thinking, are we on the track to sucking our dick into oblivion like the comic book industry, or is moviebob simply not seeing the big picture?

I'd rather not have this be a discussion about the contents of the video, but mainly the "subject" of the video:

CAN IT HAPPEN TO US?!?!

To me, I see it as an "almost but not quite" - sure we have all these games coming out that are trying to be "cool" and casual at the same time...hell look at the 360 version of Bomberman:

Yeah..much cooler than what he use to look like..I mean, he's got SCARS...he's a robot with SCARS..

No scars on that one, pfft...

but that doesn't mean we're screwed, I still see a glimmer of hope, there's tons of games that are being released that aren't trying to do this, hell, "murder in the abbey" (among the line of the "Nancy Drew" games) is being released soon but on the same day as Too Human, so even though we have all these games coming out on more than just the Wii, but it's the high profile releases that overshadow the others, so that's my only "worry" - and if a high-profile game like LBP or Spore fails catastrophically, then no one will want to make those games anymore.

Still, even if all of that shit hits the fan, we can always fall back on the PC - it's our fail safe, indie devs can flourish and it reaches the widest demographics, and will do much better assuming these consoles die.

So, will the game industry suck it's own dick into oblivion? I can see it happening, but I don't expect it for a very long time.

The only game to nearly ruin the game industry was ET but that was in the 80's and LBP couldn't possibly be bad (as that)

if LBP fails catastrophically, it may (note the may) cause serious damage to the PS3. However, that will not affect the other two consoles. Remember, during the Video Game Crash of '83, the only major console on the market was the Atari. When that failed, the video game industry faltered.

Um... what is LPB? Anyway, the video makes a very convincing arguement, I followed the comic cycle myself and the paralells are convincing.

PedroSteckecilo:
Um... what is LPB?

LBP = Little Big Planet.

I only just got it myself.

Ah yes, moviebob. Alot of his rants are pretty good, but some of them make him sound a tad bit to much like a Nintendo fan admitedly. He doesn't give kids to much credit for wanting mature titles as I'm sure that there are plenty of kids who want a nice thinking mans game. He keeps saying "hardcore" like it's a bad thing, and plenty of thigs i'd rant about how wrong his wrongness is ;P

But anyway, moviebob does make alot of points but he misses some to, but I highly doubt that LBP will fail as it's marketed towards both Adult and Younger audiences, but if it DOES fail then by god why havn't people predicted the end of video games yet?

although I can't watch the video, I can say this much about Little Big Planet... judging from what I've seen in regards to responses from gamers and critics alike from trailers, gamplay vids, demos and footage from E3, unless the devs wind up dropping the ball hardcore and totally screw the pooch with the final product, I can see Little Big Planet doing fairly well. But, I don't see the video game industry falling into oblivion, short of most of the devs suddenly going bankrupt or the country suddenly going into a depression.

The video has a good point, but it seems to be missing one point: society is drastically different than it was in the 60's-80's. For whatever reason, things like grit and grime, violence, gore, sex... all appeals to kids young enough to establish lives as gamers. And the main reason comic books aren't as popular are because people, for whatever reason, hate to read; something the video game industry can only benefit from.

LBP is on the ps3 which is the losser of the current consle war i think its success or failuire will do little to change the game industry as we know it. its irrevelant its like saying if RE4 had failed on the game cube. yes its inportant that games keep bening inventive but its just that a game on the number 3 consle is gonna do little to shift the game climinte. im sure it would mean alot more if it was a wii or 360 game. we arent doomed ppl coutine to try new things even when games like psyconuaghts(sp?) and beyond good and evil failed(commercially).

Good video.

S*** man, I'm worried about the enormous number of developers that are making FPS shooters this Fall and in 2009. There can only be so many of those things on the market and there are only so many clever differences before people lose interest. A lot of companies are going to get burned pretty badly by the fallout when gamers start looking for something new.

T360:
LBP is on the ps3 which is the losser of the current consle war i think its success or failuire will do little to change the game industry as we know it. its irrevelant its like saying if RE4 had failed on the game cube. yes its inportant that games keep bening inventive but its just that a game on the number 3 consle is gonna do little to shift the game climinte. im sure it would mean alot more if it was a wii or 360 game. we arent doomed ppl coutine to try new things even when games like psyconuaghts(sp?) and beyond good and evil failed(commercially).

Well first of all, this isn't directed just to LBP, it was mainly a headline to get attention, give an example, and get the point accross...second, it is "losing" but neither are the losers just yet, the PS3 is having a big comeback right now and heck, PSN jumped from 2 million to 10 million recently, so really, the PS3 has a bigger say in things than you think.

Jumplion:
Ah yes, moviebob. Alot of his rants are pretty good, but some of them make him sound a tad bit to much like a Nintendo fan admitedly. He doesn't give kids to much credit for wanting mature titles as I'm sure that there are plenty of kids who want a nice thinking mans game. He keeps saying "hardcore" like it's a bad thing, and plenty of thigs i'd rant about how wrong his wrongness is ;P

But anyway, moviebob does make alot of points but he misses some to, but I highly doubt that LBP will fail as it's marketed towards both Adult and Younger audiences, but if it DOES fail then by god why havn't people predicted the end of video games yet?

I like it even when he's wrong, I think he should stick to movie reviews (which he's good at) - but since he's the "Game OVERthinker" - even when he's wrong, it can get a point accross simply because he's overanalyzing lol, this never would have came to me if it wasn't for the overanalyzing.

RAKtheUndead:

if LBP fails catastrophically, it may (note the may) cause serious damage to the PS3. However, that will not affect the other two consoles. Remember, during the Video Game Crash of '83, the only major console on the market was the Atari. When that failed, the video game industry faltered.

Ah, but that's the thing! The home computer market still would have survived. Elite, the seminal and groundbreaking title by Ian Bell and David Braben, the first true multi-format success, was released in 1984 and went on to become a best seller in its time. The computer game industry would not have collapsed entirely, but it would have destroyed the console market for years, if not forever.

Though I personally don't think that Pc gaming would have caught on nearly as fast if there weren't any consoles available. If consoles didn't catch the younger market then they wouldn't have grown up and wanted a taste of what the PC could offer them and similarly, if the Wii was never here then younger audiences wouldn't want to get a taste of the hardcore from the 360 of PS3.

ummm.. ps3 exclusives?

i think that video was good

ElArabDeMagnifico:

Jumplion:
Ah yes, moviebob. Alot of his rants are pretty good, but some of them make him sound a tad bit to much like a Nintendo fan admitedly. He doesn't give kids to much credit for wanting mature titles as I'm sure that there are plenty of kids who want a nice thinking mans game. He keeps saying "hardcore" like it's a bad thing, and plenty of thigs i'd rant about how wrong his wrongness is ;P

But anyway, moviebob does make alot of points but he misses some to, but I highly doubt that LBP will fail as it's marketed towards both Adult and Younger audiences, but if it DOES fail then by god why havn't people predicted the end of video games yet?

I like it even when he's wrong, I think he should stick to movie reviews (which he's good at) - but since he's the "Game OVERthinker" - even when he's wrong, it can get a point accross simply because he's overanalyzing lol, this never would have came to me if it wasn't for the overanalyzing.

Yeah, I can't argue with that moviebob does make very good points. But for every point he makes he misses another one, for one he says that video games must be directed towards kids but many kids these days want the "hardcore" mature games (I have proof of this, talk to any one in my school who has any of the consoles and they really like bloody games). He doesn't give kids as much credit as they diserve as I'm sure many kids want these thinking mans game that come out, I know I do.

The wii and PS3 fit so nicely together, one if for your simplistic tastes and the other gives you a nice variety if you look past the frosting. Kids grow up, and with kids growing up in today's tech-phille society they want the latest and greatest so if they have a Wii they'll get the PS3 (Yet again, I have proof, my friend is going to get a PS3 when LBP comes out and he's going to get plenty of PSN titles, GoW3, MGS4, Sould Calibur 4, and plenty of others.)

Plus, his voice got annoying after a while.

Johnn Johnston:

PedroSteckecilo:
Um... what is LPB?

LBP = Little Big Planet.

I only just got it myself.

Ah, I sort of lost my ability to speak acronym around the time I realized two games go by GoW, and that they basically encompass the same adjectives.

PedroSteckecilo:

Johnn Johnston:

PedroSteckecilo:
Um... what is LPB?

LBP = Little Big Planet.

I only just got it myself.

Ah, I sort of lost my ability to speak acronym around the time I realized two games go by GoW, and that they basically encompass the same adjectives.

Don't worry, we're working hard to ensure that Gears of War's acronym is GeoW and God of War's acronym shall be GoW. If you help us in this crusade, we shall enlighten everyone else of these arconyms!

That video actually got me worried and I see all his points. But, when I was a kid and I heard about GTA, what might be the goriest and sex filled on the market, I wanted it so badly. I would follow the games like a person who would buy them. That sort of diminishes the arguement for me, but his points are still valid and I agree, there are almost no kid-friendly games. Hell, I own 15 360 games and only 3 are teen, none are E. Maybe the industry should try to market themselves as a toy. I would agree that Sony and Microsoft need to add more kid-friendly titles to their roster. There is Viva Pinata, Ratchet and Clank, Banjo-Kazooie and that's about it, at least as much as I can think of. I don't know. If all else fails, we will always have the PC market.

Whether or not LBP is successful will not damage the gaming industry in any significant degree. Should Sony continue of their catastrophic downward spiral then they will merely follow the path of their prior rival; Sega. Do you all not recall when Sega attempted to challenge Sony with the Saturn against the Playstation by releasing it four months earlier? The Saturn ended up doomed to obscurity and Sony climbed the latter, dethroning the once thought invincible Nintendo.

Speaking of Nintendo, once upon a time Sony and Nintendo were working together to create a CD-ROM console however Nintendo betrayed Sony for no adequately fathomable reason, which led to Sony creating their own console and prior to the Playstation 3 look at the results. Nintendo fell from glory last generation losing to both Sony and Microsoft and the previous generation saw Sega fold as a console competitor. However the market remained the same; actually no it became more lucrative as technology improved.

Video games have reached a media phenomena this decade. Halo 2 was the most successful media release of the year, taking down even Spiderman 2 (the movie), something no video game had ever managed. Halo 3 achieved even more success and GTAIV shattered records where ever it went.

Yes there seem to be far too many FPS titles; however there were also an abundance of horrendous horror movies in 2004-2005. I believe I counted twenty or so and yet nothing happened to prevent the movie industry from faltering. I guarantee video games will only become more dominating in the following years not less so. If Sony is not among the console run any longer then Microsoft and Nintendo can run with it and perhaps even a third company will attempt something unique.

Bourne:
If Sony is not among the console run any longer then Microsoft and Nintendo can run with it and perhaps even a third company will attempt something unique.

If anything, I can see Microsoft dropping out of the console race. I just cannot see what MS would do next, while Sony would obviously try to continually improve their Playstation brand with better technology and powerful hardware. Hell, Sony is the least likely to drop out as they continually improve technology for console. Without the Playstation we would have stuck with Cartriges much longer, without the PS2 we wouldn't get Movie intergration with consoles, without hte PSP we wouldn't have gotten a handheld that is in par with iPods, and without the PS3 Blu-ray would have never been put up in the mainstream.

I can see Nintedno and Sony still being in the race, but I just cannot see how MS would stay in the next gen conoles.

And I thought we were overthe "PS3 is PHAILING!" phase already, the PS3 is doing very well and is a healthy competitor with the other two consoles (though admitedly the 360 and PS3 are just competing for 2nd place)

Bourne:
Yes there seem to be far too many FPS titles; however there were also an abundance of horrendous horror movies in 2004-2005. I believe I counted twenty or so and yet nothing happened to prevent the movie industry from faltering. I guarantee video games will only become more dominating in the following years not less so. If Sony is not among the console run any longer then Microsoft and Nintendo can run with it and perhaps even a third company will attempt something unique.

Uh...right, but most of those were made with minimal budgets by major studios just harvesting a percentage. A lot of third party developers are going to get badly burned because they live game to game yet many are still producing FPS titles. A game developer cannot afford nearly as many flops as Hollywood could in 2005-2006.

Keep in mind this isn't an argument about the death of video games. I'm sure we'll all be playing them till we die. The question is...are we going to be playing them on a console with super hi-def graphics or on a PC by some low key indie folks?

Jumplion:

Bourne:
If Sony is not among the console run any longer then Microsoft and Nintendo can run with it and perhaps even a third company will attempt something unique.

If anything, I can see Microsoft dropping out of the console race. I just cannot see what MS would do next, while Sony would obviously try to continually improve their Playstation brand with better technology and powerful hardware. Hell, Sony is the least likely to drop out as they continually improve technology for console. Without the Playstation we would have stuck with Cartriges much longer, without the PS2 we wouldn't get Movie intergration with consoles, without hte PSP we wouldn't have gotten a handheld that is in par with iPods, and without the PS3 Blu-ray would have never been put up in the mainstream.

I can see Nintedno and Sony still being in the race, but I just cannot see how MS would stay in the next gen conoles.

And I thought we were overthe "PS3 is PHAILING!" phase already, the PS3 is doing very well and is a healthy competitor with the other two consoles (though admitedly the 360 and PS3 are just competing for 2nd place)

Actually from last I heard it is more the 360 and Wii are competing while the PS3 has been left to collect whatever popularity the previous two have not dominated. The PS3 may be doing decent however to even contemplate that it is in any way a success is wishful thinking. This was only further proven with the loss of Final Fantasy to Microsoft; yes Sony still has the game however their sales will severely suffer because it is no longer their console seller as it use to be, could you imagine the disbelief if Square decided to remake Final Fantasy VII finally yet offered it for both consoles?

Sony's only claim to their fallen glory has been Microsoft's inability to please the Japanese demographic; with the addition of so many Japanese titles, namely RPGs (Star Ocean, Final Fantasy and etc) that may change.

um, yeah.

i don't think that the hypothetical failure of Little Big Planet will have major repercussions. Conversely however, I think that if Little Big Planet succeeds then you can expect a somewhat copycat concept from Microsoft for the 360 and more in-game map editors for console games.

TANGENT: i hope they release an in-game map editor for Bionic Commando Rearmed, the Making of Video mentions that their map editor tool creates the level in-game each time it boots, utlizing stamped objects as to emulate the design contruct of the original NES version. if they gave the map editor an easy to use UI, then it would be on like donkey kongs dong.

T360:
LBP is on the ps3 which is the losser of the current consle war i think its success or failuire will do little to change the game industry as we know it. its irrevelant its like saying if RE4 had failed on the game cube. yes its inportant that games keep bening inventive but its just that a game on the number 3 consle is gonna do little to shift the game climinte. im sure it would mean alot more if it was a wii or 360 game. we arent doomed ppl coutine to try new things even when games like psyconuaghts(sp?) and beyond good and evil failed(commercially).

Shut up, The ps3 is rising on the 360, Just 5 million units behind. That said only a few of their exslusives are out yet. MGS4 is the only notable exslusive out and that game was praised to high heavens. R2, KZ2, LBP, Team ICO's project, GOW3, Do I need to go on or will you shut up?

Indigo_Dingo:

Crazybuddha56:
That video actually got me worried and I see all his points. But, when I was a kid and I heard about GTA, what might be the goriest and sex filled on the market, I wanted it so badly. I would follow the games like a person who would buy them. That sort of diminishes the arguement for me, but his points are still valid and I agree, there are almost no kid-friendly games. Hell, I own 15 360 games and only 3 are teen, none are E. Maybe the industry should try to market themselves as a toy. I would agree that Sony and Microsoft need to add more kid-friendly titles to their roster. There is Viva Pinata, Ratchet and Clank, Banjo-Kazooie and that's about it, at least as much as I can think of. I don't know. If all else fails, we will always have the PC market.

Theres also Sly 4, Jak 4, Afrika, Buzz!, and so on.

Sly 4 is a nice start, Jak 4 is a whole lot maturer though. It kinda meets about 1 foot from the halfway point to M.

Bourne:
Actually from last I heard it is more the 360 and Wii are competing while the PS3 has been left to collect whatever popularity the previous two have not dominated. The PS3 may be doing decent however to even contemplate that it is in any way a success is wishful thinking. This was only further proven with the loss of Final Fantasy to Microsoft; yes Sony still has the game however their sales will severely suffer because it is no longer their console seller as it use to be, could you imagine the disbelief if Square decided to remake Final Fantasy VII finally yet offered it for both consoles?

Sony's only claim to their fallen glory has been Microsoft's inability to please the Japanese demographic; with the addition of so many Japanese titles, namely RPGs (Star Ocean, Final Fantasy and etc) that may change.

I thought we were over the FF13 loss, and besides most people will still assume that the better version will be on the PS3 (as production for the 360 won't even START until the PS3 version is done and even then the 360 version will only be sold in Europe and North America) and we're still getting Versus.

And as everyone should already know the 360 is doing welll only in the states, everywhere else the PS3 and Wii are dominating. I highly doubt that a few RPGs on the 360 will save it from it's failure in Asia or some other places.

But I don't want this to be a console war, let's just drop this now.

EDIT: Holy crap, there's a Jak 4 in the works? And linkage to this perhaps?

Indigo_Dingo:

BallPtPenTheif:
um, yeah.

i don't think that the hypothetical failure of Little Big Planet will have major repercussions. Conversely however, I think that if Little Big Planet succeeds then you can expect a somewhat copycat concept from Microsoft for the 360 and more in-game map editors for console games.

TANGENT: i hope they release an in-game map editor for Bionic Commando Rearmed, the Making of Video mentions that their map editor tool creates the level in-game each time it boots, utlizing stamped objects as to emulate the design contruct of the original NES version. if they gave the map editor an easy to use UI, then it would be on like donkey kongs dong.

I think they'll have a (much worse) copycat even if it isn't a major financial success. They're copying Singstar, EyeCreate and Buzz!, aren't they?

Avvies(Wii.), X-Bar thingy(ps3.), Hell microsoft pretty much stole the controller design for playstation.