5 trends in the video game industry that should disappear in 2024 » Today Latest Stories

The video game industry has seen a lot of changes over the past few decades, with many studios and publishers becoming giant corporations. Xbox’s announcement of its intention to acquire Activision Blizzard for an estimated valuation of approximately $70 billion shows how these companies expand exponentially over time, creating new records with their products.

However, some recent trends in the video game industry cannot be described as positive. Although some of them bring benefits to developers and publishers, they can also be called anti-consumer when analyzed. While all five trends mentioned here may still be around at the end of 2024, it would be nice if they disappeared completely.

” class=”promoted-img” Loading=”lazy” width=”1440″ height=”220″ alt=”fortnite-promotional-banner” />

5 trends in the video game industry you should go

5) Urgent releases

It’s easy to understand why studios and developers try not to delay their releases beyond a certain point. After all, these are the days of early access and pre-orders, and buyers don’t take kindly to news of any delays. However, the recent release of Baldur’s Gate 3 absolutely proves the point that it’s better late than early. At the same time, Larian Studios took additional time and nearly an additional year than initially expected.

Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3’s campaign has been heavily criticized for a similar reason. It was initially rumored that there wouldn’t be a full-scale Call of Duty game in 2023 at all. In hindsight, this could have been the right decision. However, Activision thought otherwise, and the poor reception of the game’s campaign shows that it can hardly call itself a full-scale AAA title. As products become more complex, the video game industry and its stakeholders must take the time to hone their creations before launching.

4) Stop releasing incomplete games on Early Access

Early access is a really cool feature that allows players to get an early experience of an upcoming video game. This feature has become very popular in the video game industry to attract fans, and anyone who plays on Steam will be well aware of how it works. Now, the Early Access game is expected to be a work in progress, and will require modifications.

However, there has become a trend for developers to release their products in Early Access with a minimal amount of content. It seems that many in the video game industry have forgotten that Early Access is not supposed to be an alpha/beta phase. There should be some quality control by the developers, and they should make sure that the early access title at least justifies the money players are spending.

3) Exploitative DLC

Downloadable content is not a recent trend in the video game industry, which enables developers to continue improving their products. On the one hand, developers can include new features and content, and on the other hand, players can continue to enjoy the products for a longer period. Even if the DLCs are paid expansions, that’s a good thing.

However, a lot of incidents have occurred when core features and mechanics are locked behind a paywall. Granblue Fantasy Versus: Rising is a recent example of a full-price AAA title that has additional cosmetics locked behind paid DLC. It’s one thing if these options were instead available to unlock by grinding the game. But charging players more money for things that should be in the base game is downright greedy and something the video game industry should stay away from in 2024.

2) Poor optimization on PC

2023 has been a year of apologies, almost all of which revolve around PC video game performance. Who can even forget the amazing performance of the PC port of The Last of Us? Even mediocre releases like Redfall would have performed better on PC compared to the game’s performance on Xbox. NBA 2K24 has yet to upgrade the PC version to current generation despite major complaints from players.

It is a well-known fact that compared to consoles, there are more variants on PC platforms. Although consoles have uniform hardware (except for differences in branding), there can be hundreds of different combinations when it comes to building PC games. Regardless, it has become necessary for developers to ensure that the benchmark performance levels of their games are better and meet the expectations of PC users.

1) Overinvesting in GAS

Games as a Service (Gaas) seems to be the latest fountain of youth when it comes to the video game industry. A company like PlayStation, which has a poor track record when it comes to single-player games, has found itself in the middle of controversy due to the same reason. Just a few days ago, developers Naughty Dog announced their decision not to focus on an online game based in The Last of Us Universe.

It’s easy to understand why GaaS can seem so lucrative for investors and developers alike. After all, it’s very difficult to ignore the financial success of games like Fortnite, PUBG, and others. Even EA’s biggest grossers are Ultimate Team and Apex Legends in EA FC 24, both of which are based on the live service.

What developers need to understand is that overhyping only benefits some. While games like Fortnite or FC 24’s Ultimate Team are financial successes, there are plenty of stories of financial failures that have bankrupted development houses. Hence, the video game industry must find a proper balance and focus on variety and diversification when it comes to new projects.