With the next-gen systems now upon us, the average cost of making a video game has soared to over $10 million dollars. Graphics have never been more realistic and soundtracks are arranged by world famous artists and composers. We sure have come a long way from two 8-bit plumbers jumping through pipes to save the princess…or have we?
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According to a piece on Slate.com the video game market has been on a downward spiral over the last decade. With the rising cost of video games and greater emphasis on flashy graphics, innovation and fun gameplay have taken a backseat. This is in part due to the loss of independent developers who can no longer keep up with the high technology and cost of making games.
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These same developers invented most of the industry’s genres, said Luke O'Brien in his article. “Why should gamers and industry bigwigs care if it's tough for the little guy? Because back when games were cheaper to make, the independents came up with the ideas that moved the business forward. Richard Garriott peddled Ultima, the first major role-playing title, in plastic bags. Sid Meier's Civilization and Westwood's Dune II cracked open the strategy genre. Id Software's John Carmack and John Romero created the pioneering first-person shooter Doom. Will Wright gave us SimCity and open-ended "sandbox" simulations.”
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The piece, titled “Why There Are No Indie Video Games:
And why that's bad for gamers” can be located [a]http://www.slate.com/id/2142453/?nav=fo[aa]here[/a]