Digital Journal — Video games have come a long way since Mario jumped on green turtles. It’s evolved into a $25 billion (all numbers US) industry complete with cutthroat competition, controversy and an annual conference created to give sneak previews of the year’s new releases.
This week, the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles will hopefully answer the many questions circling around a market mired in uncertainty: Can Sony steal attention away from the Xbox 360 with its early versions of PlayStation 3? Is Nintendo’s new Wii system (originally named “Revolution”) going to rewire how we play video games? Will Microsoft finally unveil Halo 3?
Most importantly, gaming insiders want to know if the video game business can rebound from a stale year in sales. Last week, Electronic Arts, the world’s top game maker, warned that overall games sales this year could fall by five per cent from 2005. Retail sales also fell flat: According to NPD Group, domestic sales last year of hardware and software totalled $10.4 billion, only a bit more than in 2002 when gamers spent $10.3 billion.
To many analysts, it’s up to Sony and Nintendo to jolt the market out of its stagnant position. John Davison, editorial director for Ziff Davis’s network of gaming magazines, told the New York Times: “Across the industry, the big question at E3 is how companies will continue to try to manage the transition to the next generation.”
The company with the most to prove is Sony, whose PlayStation 2 console is the world’s leading game machine. Although Sony delayed the PS3 release until November, E3 attendees expect a little taste of the future. All eyes will be on who can compete with Microsoft’s Xbox 360.
Another gaming legend set to make a home-console comeback is Nintendo, a third-place finisher so far with its GameCube. But gamers are eagerly awaiting Nintendo’s next-gen system, dubbed Wii, when it touches down at E3 this week. Along with a lower price point — Wii is expected to cost less than $300 — the console is intent on redefining the gaming experience.
The Wii will introduce a new type of gyroscopic controller. Instead of figuring out button combinations, a Wii player can simply wave the controller to make a character move. For instance, to swing a sword the player can supposedly just swing the controller, which resembles a TV remote.
The gaming executives are on to something: innovation. As George Harrison, senior vice president of Nintendo at America, told the San Francisco Chronicle: “The next version of Madden football can only take you so far. At some point you need to strike out and find something wholly new.”
It’s a perfect sentiment for the impatience permeating the 54,000 net square feet at this year’s E3. Those interested in video games are anticipating the next revolution, and they’re crossing their fingers the major players will dramatically dazzle everyone into a new direction.
