4 MCV 17/09/10 NEWS [LEADER]
TAKE THE LGC CHALLENGE GETTING AN idea should be like sitting down on a pin; it should make you jump up and do something. And, for a while now, the games market has been indulging in some serious hopping about.
Most companies are already active in what they
would call the digital space (a catch-all jargon for routes to market outside of the traditional channel). But are they doing it right and will they be doing it tomorrow? That’s what The London Games Conference aims
to find out. Every year, LGC examines how digital distribution, online play, social networks and concepts like ‘games as a service’ are challenging retailers, publishers and developers. LGC is the place to see and hear what others have been doing and to garner a wider understanding of what you should be doing – including an examination of skills in the workplace and how to stay employed. We’re delighted to have amongst our speakers this
year a group of people who have done exactly what they should have done after sitting on that pin. They have made stuff happen. Keynote Heiko Hubertz is CEO of Bigpoint, which
describes itself as the don’t-look-any-further-we’ve- got-any-game-you-want website.
“Most companies are already active in the digital space. But are they doing it right? LGC aims to find out.”
Bigpoint isn’t the only company doing what it is doing, but it’s one of the best and Hubertz is one of the most outspoken when it comes to the future of gaming. Or you can listen to Shuji Utsumi, CEO of Q
Entertainment – one of the most clued-up Japanese studios when it comes to multiple revenue streams. Plus there’s Ben Cousins from EA DICE, Kristian
Segerstrale from Playfish, Floris Jan Cuypers from Spil Games, Dave Perry from Gaikai, Ian Livingstone, David Reeves, a bespoke Screen Digest report and even a Cabinet Minister. There are more speakers, including Chris Petrovic,
general manager of GameStop Digital Ventures. Just as the industry’s trade body has changed its name to engage more closely with the wider market, so many of the names driving the business forward are changing too. Current leaders may not be the leaders forever, but the winners will all have one thing in common; they will be giving consumers what they want, in the way they want it. This general premise is why even MCVmust
provide its content as a print edition, rich media digital edition, website, iPad edition, iPhone app and more. Consumers (or in your case, readers) wield the
power and demand convenience. It’s hard to know the answers. LGC will demonstrate that on November 4th, for sure, and we can’t wait to get stuck in.
Stuart.Dinsey@intentmedia.co.uk
UK games market falls to its lowest weekly level for over four years Mid-range video games are struggling, says analyst
by Christopher Dring
UK RETAIL says video games are to blame for faltering sales during the summer.
And it is easy to see why – last week the UK games market suffered its worst seven days of sales since May 2006 – before the launch of Wii and PlayStation 3. Toys R Us said its
international segment suffered a 3.2 per cent decline for the three months ending July 31st. Argos sales have fallen five per cent year-on-year for the quarter ending August 28th. And HMV sales are down 10.6 per cent for the 19-week period ending September 4th. All three chains blamed the ‘challenging’ and ‘weak’ games market for the slump. “It is an indication of the scale and importance of the games business overall that a downturn can have a real impact on so many retailers,” director general of the Entertainment Retailers Association Kim Bayley told MCV.
“It is no secret that 2010 has been a challenging year for games, but we are now seeing some exciting new releases coming through and retailers are throwing their weight behind them, giving cause for optimism for the final quarter.” Some Research and
GameVision CEO Sean Dromgoole feels the market dip is down to poor sales of mid-
“
bottom – such as Doodle Jump on iPhone, and other low-calibre titles on PC, or on PlayStation with Minis. And there will be hits that come out of that, but never as big as the enormous blockbuster titles. “What has been trashed are the games that fall in between those two things. You used to be able to flog a single-A title or a weaker title in a popular
It is an indication of the scale and importance of the games business that a downturn can have a real impact on retail. Kim Bayley, ERA
range software: “The market is moving much more towards the tentpole structure, where you have these enormous releases that are doing as well as ever, if not better,” he said. “Fantastic releases like Halo
and Call of Duty last year are bigger than blockbuster movies. On the other side, we have this hugely active punk section of the market at the
Retail blames games for summer slump
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genre – such as racing and shooters. Those games are now really, really struggling. “You either need to make a triple-A or keep it simple at a low cost. And that is really scary because it never used to be like that. It doesn’t get there tomorrow, but that is where the games market ends up within the next two years. It is becoming a polarised market.”
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