Entertainment & Games Software Industry Trends

Rising Development Costs

Development costs have risen in recent years. Some console game development budgets now exceed $20 million, and are expected to continue to rise as new hardware platform technologies increase the complexity of software development. More unit sales will be required to recoup development costs, increasing the risk of new product development.

Industry Consolidation

Driven by the increasing cost of product development, publishers continue to acquire development studios to gain greater control over the development studio's product portfolios. Higher development costs have strained the financial resources of independent studios and made them more receptive to offers from larger studios or publishers.

More Women Gamers

According to the Entertainment Software Association’s 2006 survey, women make up 30 percent of all gamers and 42 percent of online gamers. This number has increased as massively multiplayer online (MMOG) games, particularly in the role-playing genre, have become popular with women. Women are also frequent players of casual games, such as puzzles and word games.

More Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs)

Early generations of console hardware weren't enabled for online game play, but current versions of Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox are. Greater access, along with expanded broadband Internet availability, is increasing the popularity of highly social and interactive online games. Millions of gamers worldwide pay to play the MMOG online games.

Increasing Used Game Sales

In recent years, some retailers have started buying and reselling used games. Used games are sold at specialty game stores, such as Electronics Boutique and GameStop, on eBay, and other online retail outlets. While not greatly impacting shelf space, used game sales do affect unit sales and pricing of older games.

More Immersive Environments

To enrich the gaming experience, new technologies create more immersive environments for the gamer. Force-feedback driving wheels and joysticks make the gamer feel accelerating forces as speed increases. Philips offers a set of game peripherals, called amBX, which uses lights, fans, and rumble pads to enhance onscreen action. Software developers encode these new features into games for maximum effect.