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LA GAMES: Online Games About to Take Off as a Mass Medium

Authored by Jay Baage on November 7, 2006 - 1:29pm.
[Coverage from the 2006 LA Games Conference] UPDATED. Electronic games are not just for teenage boys anymore. Women, both younger and older, are playing more online games. “The money right now, however, is still in console games like Playstation 2 and Xbox”, says Mike Vorhaus, Managing Director, Frank N. Magid Associates, Inc.

At the research presentations at Digital Media Wire’s LA Games conference this morning, the message was clearly that electronic games - on various platforms such as consoles, portable devices and regular PCs – are the next big thing in media.

“The next generation of gaming consoles in the form of PS3 and Nintendo Wii are coming out this year, Xbox 360 is already out. These are devices that are ready to be connected to the Internet out of the box,” says John Broady, Director of Business Intelligence, CNET. “[Online games] are changing the traditional games business model. Online games keep the players interested over time, unlike traditional games (that work like movies, buzz around the release, but then dies out quickly).”

Next year, 2007, will be the year that online video games takes off, if there are enough new consoles to go around. “Games are the number two medium behind TV with young people. It is going to be interesting to see what happens with the introduction of the new generation of consoles. A lot of people are holding out from buying consoles until the new generation is out”, says Michael Dowling, CEO, of the research firm Interpret.

Another issue that was discussed was when video games will start to be distributed online.“The reason we don’t have online distribution is because Walmart and Target won’t let it happen, they will not sell the consoles if they can’t sell the (physical) games,” says Keith Boesky, Principal, of consulting firm Boesky and Company.

Bill Kispert, VP, Interactive, for NBC Universal and Peter Wanat, Executive Producer, Vivendi Universal Games, gave the audience a look into the future when it comes to what Hollywood can do in terms of games. They told stories of how games used to be seen as a nice add-ons to movies, but are now developing into a major creative and financial enterprise for the studios in their own right.

“There is a fundamental mindshift in Hollywood. For example, we would rather leave some money on the table than produce a low quality game when we don’t have enough time to do it right. That is what happened with the Miami Vice movie this summer. We would rather wait until we can produce a quality franchise,” says Bill Kispert.

Sandi Isaacs, VP, Interactive and Mobile, Paramount Pictures Licencing Group, agreed that video games are becoming more and more important for the major studios.

“We have been waiting for Hollywood to wake up to this exciting new platform. It is an extension of the brand, yes, but it’s also new form of entertainment. It’s a huge opportunity for the studios that have not even begun to unfold."

A comical highlight was the discussion of why some movies that were made from very successful video games like Tomb Raider don't make good movies. Clancy Brown, actor famous from movies like The Shawshak Redemption, has also acted in a number of video games. He told the audience that there are two type of actors. One is the star who is there to market the game, the other is the actor who makes the character come alive (himself).

"The bottom line is that the script has to be a good script. A hit video game like Tomb Raider does not guarantee a successful movie," says Cody Alexander, VP of Video Games, William Morris Agency.

Joakim Baage
tags: Games | Video | Movies | Wii | PS3 | Women | Hollywood | LAGAMES |



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