I’ve suppressed the urge to write about the “console war” up tip now. I just find it mostly ridiculous that fans of either PS or XBOX flame each other over the respective console. I’m not going to do that here.

What I am going to look at is this supposed decline in game sales, how it has possibly affected console gaming and what that might mean for Halo.

First off, I’ll admit I’m not an expert in the goings on of sales numbers of games and consoles. This is just my observation from reading many articles on the net, as well as conversations with friends over LIVE and people in Gamestop. So you might say this is an everyman’s point of view. Or at least mine anyway…

Gaming sales are on the decline? Why is that? Well, we have gone through a long economic recession that lasted for years. For some of us (yes, I mean me), it continues to linger on. So of course people in general may not have as much money to buy games. Add to that the increase in the price of games several years ago, and you’ve got another factor. Another reason is perceived incomplete games. What do I mean by this? Simple…

Games that come out with a basic campaign and/or multiplayer, but then VERY quickly come out with DLC after are really grinding on gamers. We already are paying a high cost for the gem itself. We do NOT want to have to pay for DLC just a scant few weeks after. WE feel burned by any developer that does that. In most cases we feel that DLC should have just been included on the disc.

At the very least, developers need to understand that and hold back on DLC until several months later. This will at least give the perception that they were working on the DLC after the main release of the game. Halo 4 and Borderlands 2 did this, as examples. When you got the game, if you bought a limited/special edition, it came with a code that enabled you to download the DLC the moment it became available and at a slightly lower cost that if you bought it through the marketplace.

Even before I was laid off from my job, I didn’t purchase a ton of video games, though I certainly bought more then. Now I have to be very picky about which games I by. So I want those games to be top-notch! Knowing that DLC will be coming with those games means more cost for that one game and less chance to buy other games. Yes, it increases the longevity of a particular game, but decreases peoples funds for other games.

Games that have lots of DLC are the norm now. It’s one way developers can recoup/make more money. AND, those are things the likes of Gamestop can’t really sell. Well, maybe codes, but even that may be lost to Gamestop eventually.

In one report I read, it said gaming time has been doubled in the past few years. However, it says that additional time is not console time, but rather cell phone/tablet games. Ugh, I loathe to put those kinds of games in the same category as console games. Here’s why phone/tablet games are doing better than ever though… For one they are CHEAP. You can buy a 99 cent app for your phone/tablet and get hours of “fun” out of it. More and more of these games are becoming pay to play games, meaning you are nearly forced to buy some in-game currency to advance or have to really GRIND it out to get anywhere in the game. Knowing how many people nowadays want that instant gratification and the relative low cost of the in-game currency, people shell out those additional dollars. What has happened though is some of those games become “addicting” to the point where people are paying, in the long run, as much as if not MORE than console games. It’s easy, I’ve done that in the past myself on a Facebook game. (NO, not Farmville…rolls eyes) LOL.

So with phone/tablet games now being considered part of the gaming market, it’s easy to see why console games by comparison have been on the decline. High initial cost of console games, plus too quickly after launch DLC eats away at one’s funds. The phone/tablet games are cheap, even the in-game money is too. Just look at the numbers “Flappy Bird” was pulling in. It’s said the guy who developed the game was making $50K a DAY….let that sink in. And he pulled the game. That I’ll never understand.

Another thing that’s becoming bigger and bigger is digital sales of games. Many of us balked at that as we want that physical disc.  As well, since digital purchases mean no cost for printing of the cover art of cases, or the directions, shouldn’t we expect some reduced cost for purchasing digitally? I certainly do expect that. It’s only now being considered. But if it’s not instituted, it will be just another thing that ruffles many a gamer’s feathers as a perception of greed by the gaming industry.

Okay, so let’s move on to the consoles themselves. Regardless is you like one over the other, the fact is, they ARE expensive. PS4 is $400, XBOX One is $500. Either way, it’s a LOT of money for a console system. What makes it worse is when there are issues with these systems after launch. We gamers DO expect them to work, and darn near flawlessly. If I’m going to pay several hundreds of dollars for something it MUST work. Now, I don’t know much about Playstation anymore (haven’t had one since the PS2), the following is going to be solely regarding XBOX.

Not only is the cost high for the XBOX One, but of course we also have to pay a yearly membership for the privilege to play multiplayer. More and more games are requiring an internet connection for them to work. I take a look at Defiance as an example. When I got it, I was excited for it, since I’m a huge fan of the game. Once I put the disc in and started it up, I quickly realized that there was no offline campaign and everything was online MMORPG. I played it twice and haven’t played it since. So I got burned for the money I paid for that game. We needn’t go over the horrible PR mess with the XBOX One’s reveal, just keep it in mind. As well, we don’t need to go into detail about the additional $100 over the PS4, just keep that in mind. It made matter worse with the whole NSA thing and the XBOX One having an “always on” Kinect…keep that in mind. The XBOX One made a system that from what I read was what Sony was trying to initially do with the PS3. And we all know that the PS3 lost the previous console war to the XBOX 360. Why would Microsoft think releasing a console that has similarities to the previous PS gen console would work? They were met with much backlash and Sony just sat back and watched what unfolded.

Microsoft is being tightlipped about sales numbers of the XBOX One. Why? If their numbers were even close to Sony’s they would likely have said something. This air of secrecy with Microsoft has worn on me and many of my friends. Not just with their console, but with games done by in-house developers. This is were I look to Halo. Yes, the franchise has never fully revealed everything about it’s next game. That’s understandable. But it’s pretty evident that Halo 4’s trickle of information hurt it, not to mention the perception of being a pseudo Call of Duty clone (perks and such). Microsoft has hedged a lot of it’s bets on a new franchise in Titanfall. What does that say for it’s belief in the Halo franchise? If Titanfall sales are flat, what will that mean for the XBOX in general? Destiny is coming out in September. It’s NOT exclusive to XBOX. In fact by all accounts from what I’ve read, the PS will have MORE content than the XBOX version.

We then come back to Halo. The rumor is a “new” game in November. Is it Halo 2 Anniversary? A wholly NEW Halo game? What? yes, we gamers are impatient when it comes to news of our favorite games. However, I think it’s fairly safe to assume that 343 needs to promote the hell out of the next game and can not afford to shroud it in secrecy. If it is Halo 2 Anniversary, we already know much of what we can expect. So no biggie. In fact at this point I hope it IS Halo 2 Anniversary as I don’t think there was enough time between Halo 4 and this coming November to develop a wholly new Halo game for the XBOX One.

With the plethora of games out there, the market for games has become diluted. Even games like Call of Duty have seen a decline in sales. Last year’s Grand Theft Auto saw MASSIVE sales, the likes of which we may not see again. Why? For one, it had been 5 years since it’s previous game. Quite a long time. Not just for development, but to hype up that franchise. When it came out, people were clamoring for it. Sure, not a ton of news came out about it, but what did blew people away (figuratively…). Just enough and just the RIGHT kind of info about the game came out.

So where does this all leave Halo? Well, I’ve said it before. The next fully new Halo game needs to knock it out of the atmosphere, not just the park. Any public speaking of the game by 343/Microsoft needs to be darn near flawless. Any controversy stemming from leaked info needs to be addressed and QUICKLY. If not, it leaves us to wonder and worry about the next game. If we’re to pay the $60 (or more) for the next Halo game, it MUST include all of the classic stuff that it’s predecessors have. Theater for Campaign for one. Ranked and Social Playlists another (and WELL managed to boot). Personally I’d love to see Firefight come back. I’d also want Spartan Ops, but with 343’s killing that one after just one season when we expected more to follow, well, it’s probably best to let that part die (unfortunately).

Regarding DLC for the next NEW Halo game, PLEASE for the love of gawd, do NOT have it come out soon after. Rather include a LOT of stuff on the disc at launch, then maybe 5-6 months after release the first DLC and every 5-6 months again there after. However, if this happens, DLC MUST have it’s own playlist ALWAYS included in the active playlists.

I have hopes that 343 has learned from it’s mistakes with Halo 4. But with sales of the XBOX One already hurting, more and more games coming out, not just for consoles, but cheaply for phones/tablet, they’ve got one heck of a huge hill to climb. This is why I keep saying the next new Halo game MUST be the absolute best of them all. The franchise can not afford even a perceived lackluster game. I think we all know that perception greatly influences our realities. A lot is riding on the next Halo game, especially if Titanfall doesn’t pick up sales for the XBOX One.

At this point, I’m cautiously optimistic.

Finally, one thing I really do NOT want to see anymore are developers (ANY OF THEM) having parties, often with lavish spreads of food. Often with them drinking gawd knows what, but alcohol to be sure. To the all developers I say this, regardless that that money is but a very small portion of production costs, it does give the perception of arrogance and thriving off of your consumers. I personally don’t want to see that. When I do, it pisses me off even more that I’m forced to pay $60 for a game, continued costs for DLC, and often for games that aren’t fully done. Knock that crap off. There are some things that you SHOULD keep secret. THIS is one of those things. If you’re holding these parties, then the game comes out and it’s flat, unfinished, etc., that makes we gamers wonder why you weren’t harder at work finishing the game, rather than partying it up. Yes, you deserve a party for the game being certified and released, just don’t make it public. There are some of us (again I mean me), that struggle for every dollar. I don’t want to see your boisterous parties.

So how do you feel about all of this? Do you buy lots of games? Do you play console/cell phone/tablet games? Are you disgusted with the cost of games and/or consoles? How have these things affected your buying power and your choices of what you buy? Has or will this affect your thoughts and future plans to buy further in the Halo franchise?

I know this was a long article, but I felt the need to write it.

-Sal