Games are increasingly serious business

Posted by Dennis Sellers Jun 27, 2006 at 9:01pm

There’s never a lack of speculation about what Apple may or may not do. One of the most recent rumors is that Apple is recruiting a team to work on game development. I’ve said before that this is a good idea—especially if the development concentrates on Macs rather than the iPod. And there’s still more evidence that gaming is increasingly becoming serious business.

Though game company share prices have been stagnant, trends in mobile, online and multiplayer gaming are re-igniting interest in such companies, though there are certainly hurdles to overcome. For example, companies are trying to figure out the best way to generate revenue from online play. But despite this, the sector looks as if it’s gaining traction. Game-maker share prices gained recently after Susquehanna Research changed its rating on the sector from “neutral” to “positive,” reports InfoWorld.

The company said that after getting doused with realistic expectations, game makers are poised to come back. Expectations have reached “sober levels,” Susquehanna analyst Jason Kraft said in a research note. Last week Electronic Arts announced that it was buying Mythic for an undisclosed sum. This was perceived as a vote of confidence in massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) and online playing is considered as still in its infancy, with huge potential, InfoWorld notes. Also, the videogame market grew by about 17 percent from 2004 to 2006, according to IDC.

The Mac has usually been the “also ran” when it came to computer gaming. Apple can change that by developing games in-house or working with game developers to better promote Mac gaming. And with gaming apparently on a strong growth pattern, what better time than now to do it?

Thoughts? Write me at daseller@earthlink.net

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