Games Costing $60 ‘Holding Gaming Industry Back’ Says Developer

Pre-owned games is something that causes a lot of consternation among publishers and developers. However, Saber Interactive CEO Matthew Karch (developer of TimeShift and the downloadable game for Battle: Los Angeles) said the onus is not on gamers for buying and selling games, but rather on the game makers who need to consider new approaches.

“I absolutely feel that cheaper, digital games have to be the future,” said Karch. “$60 is a lot to pay for a game, and while there is definitely a market for games in that price range, for many people that’s an immediate barrier to entry. People in our industry are in a panic about used games, but honestly, can you blame people for playing a game and then trying to get some value back out of it The only way for many gamers to currently play multiple triple-A games is to shell out quite a bit of money and that definitely limits our consumer base.”

“If you want to reach an audience that is not accustomed to spending or can’t spend that kind of money, then you need to give them an alternative,” he added. “I think this also applies to our core audience. Smaller, high quality digital downloads are a great way to do that.

“I think the price tag alienates gamers. People complain about $5 spent when they don’t like a download How do you think they feel about blowing $60 That definitely limits our audience, he surmised. “The $60 price tag is holding games back, in more respects than one. The primary problem with the price tag is that it limits the market. Because the market is limited, publishers need to make sure they hit as many in their audience as possible with a game. This means that less risks are taken and games end up being much more ‘cookie cutter’ and innovation is stifled.”

Source: CVG

Resident Evil Returns To Raccoon City

Capcom has confirmed ongoing rumors that a new Resident Evil title is under development at Slant 6 Games, veterans of Sony’s SOCOM series. The game will be a squad based shooter, described as a re-imagining of the events between Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3, where Umbrella Security Services soldiers look to cover up the outbreak in Raccoon City, killing zombies, survivors and U.S. special forces.

Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City will have co-op for up to four players and multiplayer online modes. Familiar characters like Leon Kennedy will return.

Capcom also announced that the 3DS title Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D will include a free demo of Resident Evil Revelations.

Sucker Punch: Feudal Warriors

The fourth and final animation dedicated to Sucker Punch details the background of the massive samurai warriors Baby Doll must face. These warriors have been infused with demonic power, making them unbeatable until now.

 

LittleBigCreation

Help make a new make.believe level for LittleBigPlanet 2. Each week users on Facebook will vote to determine how the game will be designed and be entered to win a trip for two to the 2011 E3 Expo in Los Angeles. The first week users vote on a name randing from the make.believe adventure, The LittleBigCreation or The Search for make.believe. If you believe that you can imagine anything, check out the app on Facebook and vote now!

Guitar Hero III Generated Nearly A Billion In Sales

NPD has released a list of the top grossing games of all time, and Activision’s Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock tops the list with $830.9 million drawn in right at the peak of the music genre. Call of Duty: Black Ops is primed to take that slot with $787.4 million in gross revenue from less than half a year on the shelf.

Activision had a dominant presence on the top 10 list, with five titles that also included Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Guitar Hero World Tour and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Nintendo took up four slots with Wii Fit, Wii Play, Wii Fit Plus and Mario Kart Wii. Rock Band is the only title not published by Nintendo or Activision, and it came in at number five, taking in $670.7 million.

Source: 1UP

Zynga Seeks Tax Breaks

Zynga has announced that they are looking to extract tax breaks from the city of San Francisco. They want a deal similar to what the city offered Twitter to remain in the area; they say they will consider moving their HQ otherwise.

We are looking at a variety of options to grow the company in the Bay Area, and as part of that, we are in serious discussions with the city, a Zynga spokesman said in a statement. It would be premature to comment on those conversations at this time. We are encouraged that the city is engaging with us on this issue.

Source: MarketWatch

Crowdsourcing Here To Stay, Says Evangelists

Crowdsourcing is becoming a popular option from marketers, with entire companies being set up around the method. At a panel at the 4A’s Transformation Conference, the consensus was that the movement is here to stay.

“The crowdsourcing model is very young but also very exciting, said Tim McClure, co-founder of Omnicom’s GSD&M and founder and CEO of Mythos Legends, a branding company, and the MindMeld Alliance, virtual crowdsourcing agency. We have to overcome the fear of it because it’s changing.

“What we’re beginning to see across our brands is that we have to accept reality that the brand isn’t controlled by a few people,” said Charles Chappell, digital and e-commerce leader at P&G. “There are thousands of people who like our brands and have conversations about them. For us, crowdsourcing touches everything we do.”

Chappell noted that P&G has used crowdsourced ideas for several of its brands, including a new Hugo Boss fragrance, enlisting students and design schools for concepts surrounding the new perfume. “We’re trying a lot of things, but at the end of the day what hasn’t changed is that we’re looking for the best ideas, said Chappell. What has changed is where those ideas will comes from.”

For Chappell, the biggest fear is the loss of control. P&G has been executing a push to leverage online consumer ratings and reviews for its products. “If the products reviews are good, they will help the brands’ images, said Chappell. But if they’re bad, the marketer could run into problems trying to manage any potential control it had over badly reviewed products.

It’s a risk using those reviewers as brand ambassadors. It’s an experiment,” noted Chappell. “We don’t know if it’s going to work.”

“The spirit of competition makes the work better. Crowdsourcing makes us all nervous but it makes the work better, added McClure.

Source: AdAge