Is the video game industry recession proof

MSNBC's game-editor Kristin Kalniug wrote an article asking whether or not the video-game industry is "recession-proof":

"About nine months ago MSNBC's game-editor Kristin Kalniug wrote an article asking whether or not the video-game industry is "recession-proof." As an anticipated artist and animator for video-games, this question is one that became really important to me, especially now with our economy looking the way it does. I proposed this same question at a small presentation called "Art, Technology, and Design: What is the Future of Games?" hosted by Champlain College. The question was initially met with a lot of turned heads and some smiles and snickers scattered about. That's okay though, because this is an important question to ask."

[MGOelite]

no, games will cost more to be developed when the sh!t hits the fan for real, so the dev's will want more money so the retail price goes up

[TheAntiFanboy]

Better question: Is the title question-mark proof?

[KingKionic]

yes....at the moment.

A lot games coming from july -december...

A lot of games.

[SnukaTheMan]

Americas school system in action...

[ReTarDedFisHy]

No one ever considers that spelling mistakes could have been typos. Because we all know that typos are an urban myth. It's just not possible.

[OtherWhiteMeat]

The game industry may be recession proof but people aren't.Sooner or later the they (gaming industry) will figure it out.60 dollars a game is a joke.Adjust the prices during these rough times.

[jessupj]

Try $120 for a new game (and stays that price for a year) then you can complain about your $60 games.

[Panthers]

Funny thing is that the gaming industry should be the last thing that is recession proof. I mean if people are strapped for money, they dont need to be buying games. But that aint gunna stop me ;)

[jessupj]

People don't need to buy chocolate either, but it sells even more in a recession

[Cheeseknight28]

Considering Factor 5, Radical, and 3D Realms are more or less going bankrupt (Or have), I could easily argue that the gaming industry is NOT recession proof.

[Perkel]

and they done very good games recent years ... ?

They are not a proof.

[Cheeseknight28]

Please don't use broken English dude. I could barely understand what you were saying.

And if you are actually insinuating that Rogue Squadron and TimeSplitters were bad games, then you need to get off this site and develop a better opinion.

[rockleex]

I had no idea that Timesplitters was made for next gen consoles? So it was Timesplitters that caused them to go bankrupt... not Haze?

3D Realms went down directly because of the economy. Not because they spent 10 years making a game.

/sarcasm

Perkel asked you, "and they done very good games recent years?"

In case you don't understand, I'll translate it for you.

Have those companies, the ones you listed, made ANY good games in recent years? Have those games sold well?

It doesn't matter whether there's a recession or not. If your games do not sell enough to bring your money back, then your company is going down.

In fact, the step towards HD is actually whats making it harder for developers to get their money back. This is why smart companies develop games for many platforms and genres, spreading to handhelds and Wii, etc.

[ChampIDC]

Recession resistant? Probably. Recession proof? No.

[kaveti6616]

People buy video games with money.

People are not recession proof.

Therefore, the video game industry is not recession proof.

No industry is resilient to recession, not even the toilet paper industry. People will stop buying even necessities in order to stay afloat.