Hot Gaming Trends in 2003

Posted on January 23, 2004

Game Informer, a computer and video games magazine, covered the hottest trends in gaming and entertainment in its January issue. Game Informer's latest issue also recaped everything from the Top 50 Games of the Year to Steven Spielberg's involvement in a film version of horror game Fatal Frame.

"Video games have expanded well beyond the simple toys they were 20 years ago, and our Year in Review shows the effect this evolution is having on the world at large," said Game Informer Editor-in-Chief Andy McNamara. "Bashing myths that games are for kids, the average American gamer is now 29 years old, and a lot of those gamers are women. Whether it's investors recognizing this expanding demographic or Hollywood working with the game industry to entertain audiences in new ways, video games are shaping our cultural landscape."

Game Informer's Top 10 Gaming Trends for 2003

1. Gamer Guys Getting Older ... and They Have Company
   When Nielsen's November TV ratings report showed a dramatic drop of male viewers in the 18-34 demographic, many analysts pointed to the video game industry, and with good reason. This August, The Entertainment Software Association released a study showing that the average age of U.S. gamers is now 29. The study also reported that men over 18 still held down the fort, making up 39 percent of the nation's gaming public. Women gamers surprised everyone by coming in second at 26 percent, ahead of boys aged 7-15.

2. Hollywood Is Hot for Games
   With exclusive footage filmed specifically for the game, the Wachowski brothers' simultaneous release of film The Matrix Reloaded and video game counterpart Enter the Matrix set a new standard for cooperation between the motion picture and game industries. Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks SKG made waves with the announcement of its film version of the horror title Fatal Frame. Several other motion picture studios announced plans to make Hollywood magic of games, with Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson slated to star in the film version of Spy Hunter, Christian Slater signed on for Alone in the Dark, and many other games licensed for movie production.

3. Making Profit and Cutting Losses
   Prices for Xbox, PlayStation 2 and GameCube all dropped, but not as much as expected. Publisher Capcom dropped 18 games in development, but charmed critics with its latest hero, Viewtiful Joe. While Nintendo posted its first losses since going public in 1962 and Microsoft's Xbox division reported a $348 million loss for the last quarter of 2002, Xbox sales continued to increase and Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker broke records, pre-selling more than 560,000 copies in the United States alone.

4. Legislation from Michigan to Thailand
   Governments around the world introduced game-related legislation: Michigan legislators passed (and later overturned) a bill outlawing the sale of M-rated games to people under 17; the European Union instituted a 17 percent value added tax on subscriptions for online games; and Thailand placed a curfew on online gaming, blocking access to foreign game servers from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

5. Music to their Ears
   In addition to pop songs showing up in games from Amplitude to Tony Hawk's Underground, musicians got in on the game. Hip-hop label Def Jam placed its artists in wrestling game Def Jam Vendetta, punk icon Henry Rollins provided the voice for Black Label Games' Mace Griffin, and American Idol landed its own game featuring the voices of Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell.

6. Games are a Higher Education
   A University of Rochester study found that men who played action- oriented video games were better at tracking objects and quickly processing visual information. Southern Methodist University made gaming scholarly by adding a game development program to its curriculum.

7. Celebrities Seek Justice
   Even after Acclaim dropped BMX superstar Dave Mirra's name from their adults-only BMX XXX title, Mirra filed suit against the video game publisher, alleging the company continued to use his name and likeness to promote the project. Former Deee-Lite front woman Lady Miss Kier brought charges against Sega, and retired wrestler Maxx Payne filed against Rockstar Games; each cited misappropriation of their likeness in the companies' hit games.

8. Religion and Gaming Intersect
   Microsoft's Kakuto Chojin was recalled from shelves in February after concerns the game featured content potentially offensive to Muslims. Meanwhile, new age multimedia gurus at The Wild Divine Project announced a computer game designed to take gamers on a "spiritual journey."

9. Online Gaming - Some Live, Some Kicking
   Despite predicted success and a Newsweek cover story, Electronic Arts' The Sims Online was left struggling for an audience with only 82,000 registered users in its first month. On the flip side, Microsoft surprised skeptics in March with the announcement that 350,000 gamers had registered for its new Xbox Live service.

10. Handheld Gaming Hot and Cold
    Nintendo's backlit Game Boy Advance SP was hot even before it hit shelves this March, but gaming newcomer Nokia got the cold shoulder from gamers when it launched the N-Gage to dismal sales in October. Retailers responded by dropping N-Gage prices just weeks after its release.