Here's a look at reports and results for selected companies that make or sell video games.
July 12: NPD Group reports that US retail sales of video game hardware, software and accessories fell 29 percent in June to $700 million. It's the seventh consecutive month of decline. Sales of console and portable software - the video games themselves - fell 29 percent from a year earlier, while sales of hardware fell 45 percent. Sales of accessories grew 4 percent. Excluded are sales of used games and rentals as well as digital and social-network spending.
Today Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson provided a look into his ideas for the use of generative AI in the company's development processes.
EA is still a shady shitty company even with or without the help of Skynet. All they will use AI for is new ways to milk loot boxes and come up with the same sports title with a different year on the label. They are one company I truly do hate with a passion. They single handedly ruined some great franchise with their death touch. ME, Dead Space, Alice Returns, Dante's Inferno.
EA layoffs followed by 'Generative AI to Drive Monetization'
I knew it. Wonder what AI salary looks like? Nothing.
And take away creativity, and people's jobs as we've been seeing. Got it.
No thanks. I want my games created by people, not AI.
EA doesn't want to lose their title of worst gaming company ever, always trying their best to remain the champs!
What's sad is that they have so much potential to be a decent publisher.
SSX Tricky / SSX 3
Def Jam Vendetta / Fight for New York
NBA Street
NFL Steet
Mirror's Edge
Bad Company
Burnout 3 / 4 / 5
Remember when EA used to be awesome? It's all over with now. Unpolished, if not out-right broken games these days. Endless monetization and gambling in their sports games, and let's not forget wasting hours of your life trying to unlock characters or equipment using "surprise boxes!"
Gareth, Justin, and JoeyZ look at Layoff news for EA and Sony and reasons behind the downturn in the industry and more.
EA CEO Andrew Wilson writes: "In this time of change, we expect these decisions to impact approximately 5 percent of our workforce. I understand this will create uncertainty and be challenging for many who have worked with such dedication and passion and have made important contributions to our company. While not every team will be impacted, this is the hardest part of these changes, and we have deeply considered every option to try and limit impacts to our teams. Our primary goal is to provide team members with opportunities to find new roles and paths to transition onto other projects. Where that’s not possible, we will support and work with each colleague with the utmost attention, care, and respect. Communicating these impacts has already begun and will be largely completed by early next quarter."
All the big ones doing the same stuff. Terrible. I just hope that all these people are able to get a new job as soon as possible, God know that it is horrible to be left jobless when you have your kids or your parents depending on your financial help
The point I feel is problematic about all of this is that focusing on Owned Ip means more sequels, remasters and more of what was selling last year.
as long as i get my socom, persona, and metal gear games both on ps3 and vita, im a happy camper. couldnt live with out them. also COD keeps me sane too.
AH yes! DOOOOOM AND GLLOOOOOOOM! Or... are we already over half a decade into the current gen cycle and this sort of thing happens?
It's not doom yet; but keep on trying to force the next gen and when people can't afford a new $400+ console in the first critical months people are going to wonder why their beloved companies failed.
Both Microsoft and Sony are trying to push the next gen I'm sure; but I'm almost willing to say that they are cutting corners as much as possible to make next gen technology affordable, because the PS3 may have been the only $600 console to survive in gaming history, but something like that won't repeat itself.
That's why you see everyone looking at cloud gaming and streaming, to lower the price. If Sony is smart, they'll use the Cell again but more of them or more SPUs since it's probably cheaper, just add memory this time and upgrade the card and that will be fine. Microsoft will probably do that too, but replace the cell with a GPU.
I was skimming the front page of n4g and read "How the video games industry is farting"... then I stopped and read "faring". I thought farting was a better title.
On Topic - "Wii U, this year. It is forecasting 10.5 million units for the full fiscal year, which ends in March 2013." That's a lot of Wii U's... With that many units expected to sell, it has to come in at the $300 price point.