As 2005 draws to a close, some reflections on the industry
By Michael Lafferty

2005 was a great year in the business, and let’s hope 2006 builds on that foundation

The time has come to close the book on the year 2005 and what a terrific year it was. The year kicked off with a bang with the release of some pretty stellar titles, cruised through the launch of a new handheld system, continued with the war of words at E3 and the tantalizing promise of better things to come, and then – more or less – wrapped up with the launch of the first of the next-gen home console machines.

In many ways 2005 is a transition year. We know, for example, that ’06 will see the other home consoles flood the market, and can only hope that the lessons learned with the release of the 360 are not repeated – as in not enough units on the store shelves. And while the 360 had, arguably, the best launch titles of any platform in the history of the video-game industry, there was some disappointment there as well. Flashy graphics are all well and good, but the playing community is starting to see beyond the pretty pictures and is looking for more options and content in their games. The new consoles will be able to allow developers the ability to provide deeper games with startling graphics, though it may be a couple of years before we actually see the melding of both.

If you look at some of the benchmark titles of 2005, it is apparent that baby steps were taken in that direction. Games like Shadow of the Colossus showed that players could be content with involved battles against boss monsters without having to wade through hordes of minions to get there. And the fights were as much cerebral exercises as they were reflexive. A title like Guild Wars showed that the MMO genre is changing and subscription facets will need to be addressed down the road. The sims of 2005 were also pretty solid and took a major step forward in terms of creativity (like The Movies) and addictive gameplay.

Yes, it was quite the year, and it builds the foundation for the one to follow.

The gaming community is evolving. More people are gravitating to games and demanding more from the experience. When a publisher/developer puts out a product and shows what is possible, that elevates the entire industry, educates the gamers and puts the onus on future projects to live up to the new benchmark. The days of flooding the market with games that seem rushed out to capitalize on a current trend seem to be waning – or at least, let’s hope so.

As development cycles move along, there are some things that those creative souls working on titles will need to realize and remember. Primary is to not just slap out something that they think will sell, but to give us the game experience they would want. Since a majority of developers are die-hard gamers, who play a variety of styles of games, they have the unique opportunity to continue to move the industry forward. Too often the bottom line is simply to get the game out and make a buck, and that results in hollow gaming experiences. Give us the games you would want to play. Make the experience deep, the type of ‘water-cooler games’ that keep us enthralled. With the new consoles, the previous limitations have been erased and imaginations can truly soar.

In 2005 there were several anticipated titles that were delayed. This is a good thing. It tends to mean that developers were more interested in creating solid games that went beyond the original concept and the hope is that the games will advance the original concept in more fascinating ways. Of course, they may also have just been dealing with bugs, but we can only hope that concepts were being reworked.

To the developers and publishers who made 2005 such a wonderful video-game experience – thank you. To those working on titles, or hardware destined for release in the coming year – dare to dream big and make the coming year even better.

Last week, prior to Christmas, I tapped into some of the friends I have within the industry (those who were not afraid to answer – and yes, that is a second dig at all of you who didn’t, the first dig was for the Christmas column) to get their thoughts on the year past and the year to come – reflections and predictions. I asked them a couple of questions and they responded. These answers in no way reflect company policies or stances but are personal reflections. And also note that they were told they could be as funny or corny as they liked. Here are their answers:

Janna Bureson, Media Relations at NCsoft:

What made 2005 so memorable for you?

Janna: “It was the first E3 we weren’t understaffed! On the personal front, I took an incredible trip to Italy at the end of October. Tasted more than 50 wines, picnicked in the vineyards … it was lovely.”

What industry prediction do you have for 2006?

Janna: “I should probably stay away from this one. (Typical PR person, eh?)”

Sean Kauppinen, Director at Kohnke Communications:

What made 2005 so memorable for you? 

Sean: “Had a son, moved from Sony Online to Kohnke Communications, bought another house, got to work on some amazing games, and it was a good year!”

What industry prediction do you have for 2006? 

Sean: “PS3 will threepeat as the #1 consumer gaming console in the world! I will be pre-ordering 10 PS3s so I can sell them on launch day and take my family to Hawaii!”

Tali Fischer, PR Manager at Eidos Interactive:

What made 2005 so memorable for you?

Tali: “Moving to San Francisco and joining the Eidos team was definitely the most memorable thing for me this year. No more Canadian winters for me!”

What industry prediction do you have for 2006?

Tali: “I think it is going to be a HUGE year for video games – especially with the launch of PS3. There will be some amazing games coming out for both the new generation and current systems that will continue to push beyond our wildest dreams and fantasies. I also think this year will bring more and more celebrities to the video-game table. The industry is breaking out more and more becoming a source of entertainment for men and women of all ages. It’s come a long way … and will only continue going further then we expected. I can’t wait to see what happens.”  

Here’s hoping that 2005 was good to you and 2006 will be even better. Happy New Year!

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