Yahoo's Eight Predictions for '08

[kiraevo]

Yahoo's Eight Predictions for '08
What will be the big video game stories of 2008? Peer into our crystal ball and discover eight potential futures.

Red Rings of Death. 'Ban'hunt. Wii droughts. Last year was a crazy one for gamers, filled with controversies, console wars and more amazing games than we could reasonably afford to play. We've already pointed out some of the coming year's biggest releases, but what else might gamers expect? What unforeseen events will define video games in 08? With the help of some tarot cards, a few unsubstantiated rumors and a time-traveling DeLorean, we summon our inner Nostradamus and present eight possible outcomes for the year ahead.

1. The PS3 will gain ground. Really.

Stop laughing - we're being serious. After a pretty dismal year, Sony is poised to snatch back a significant chunk of the market share it unwittingly handed over to Microsoft and Nintendo. Why would we make such an outlandish claim? Simple: compared to the 360 and the Wii, the PS3 has the most room for growth and the tastiest morsels left on the post-holiday plate.


WATCH PS3 HOME TRAILER NOW


WATCH LittleBigPlanet TRAILER NOW


WATCH MGS TRAILER NOW

The launch of Metal Gear Solid 4 and LittleBigPlanet will give PS3 users two more mega-exclusives worth bragging about (until MGS eventually makes it to the 360, Konami's denials be damned), and 2008 promises to be the year Sony will finally release its much-ballyhooed and oft-delayed Home network. Sure, Microsoft still has GTA IV, and Nintendo will rule the roost early with Super Smash Bros. Brawl, but the rest of the year is up for grabs. Since they're the most desperate, Sony's hand will move the fastest.

2. Nintendo will get fit, start a fight, and vanish for six months.

It's good to be the king, although that also means everyone's gunning for your crown. And while we expect Nintendo to finally meet Wii hardware demands in 08, we're not as convinced that they'll keep consumers interested in their games for the full calendar year. The company starts off 08 with the potent one-two punch of Wii Fit and Super Smash Bros. Brawl, pretty much ensuring another winning quarter.


WATCH SUPER SMASH TRAILER NOW


WATCH MARIO KART TRAILER NOW

But what happens after that? Other than Mario Kart Wii, there's nothing particularly exciting lined up to keep those elusive Wiis from collecting dust. Beyond massive first-party gems like Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime, the current software lineup is pretty thin and the upcoming Wii release list is comparatively weak. We're expecting a slew of new first-party announcements come the E3 convention in July, but that might be just enough time for the competition to catch up.

3. All three console manufacturers will release new versions of their rigs.

Time was, you bought a video game system, enjoyed it for a few years, then bought a new one. Remember? Before you dropped hard-earned cash on a console only to find out that a newer, better and potentially cheaper version would come out just a few months later? Microsoft introduced two new 360 SKUs in 2007: Xbox 360 Arcade and Xbox 360 Halo 3 Special Edition, to go along with the Pro and Elite models. Sony confused everyone by releasing an 80 GB version, discontinuing the 60 GB version, and releasing the reduced-price 40GB version all within three months. Oh, and they made a slimmer PSP. You get the feeling Nintendo would have pumped out four versions of the Wii had they actually been able to meet initial hardware demand. So what's on tap for 2008? In an effort to sway consumers further away from Sony's PS3 and its Blue-Ray capabilities, look for Microsoft to announce a new high-end model featuring a built-in HD-DVD drive. Sony will surely announce more pricing schemes, and we wouldn't be shocked if Nintendo finally decided to offer a Wii capable of outputting in HD. Actually, we'd be thrilled.

4. GTA IV will put Rockstar back on top.

Last year was like one long, foggy hangover for Rockstar Games. Between the public outcry over Manhunt 2 and the unfortunate delay of GTA IV, the once-vaunted game publisher was bludgeoned by bad news in 2007. But if a game company is indeed judged by the success of their games, expect 2008 to rocket Rockstar back into the spotlight; Grand Theft Auto IV is that big of a deal.


WATCH GTA4 TRAILER NOW

In fact, it's the biggest game ever in the series, a monumental undertaking that combines the franchise's criminally fun gameplay with an incredible graphics engine and unparalleled depth. Despite the inevitable media backlash, Rockstar's upcoming best-seller should see the company back on solid ground.

A lot can happen in twelve months, especially when you've got a controller in your hands. Here are four more events that seem destined to make video game news in 2008.

5. EA will buy or merge with (INSERT NAME OF SLIGHTLY SMALLER COMPANY)

Valve? Epic? Hershey's, maybe? No company is safe with this leviathan lurking below the surface, waiting to gobble up studios curious enough to set foot in the waters of "partnership" negotiation. Last year saw the mighty Bioware (Mass Effect, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic) and the only slightly less mighty Pandemic (Full Spectrum Warrior, Mercenaries) wander into the gaping maw of the mega-publisher; past acquisitions include Criterion (Burnout series), Digital Illusions (Battlefield) and Mythic (Dark Age of Camelot).


WATCH BATTLEFIELD: BAD COMPANY TRAILER NOW


WATCH BURNOUT PARADISE TRAILER NOW

So what's next on the menu? Hard to say, but we wouldn't be surprised if they targeted an ailing publisher like Eidos or a successful smaller player like Bethesda. Heck, this time next year you might be reading EA Yahoo.

6. You will play (and enjoy) more casual games than ever before.

That's not a threat so much as a fact. What used to be a bad word among the more hardcore gamers has become the natural evolution of an industry whose users face ever-dwindling amounts of free time. According to a 2007 report by the Casual Games Association, over 200 million people enjoyed online casual gaming every month of last year.


WATCH CAKE MANIA TRAILER NOW

And unlike the predominantly male hardcore gaming crowd, the casual gaming scene is almost evenly split down gender lines. It's not just a PC phenomenon, either, as the crossover success of the family-friendly Wii has game publishers scrambling to offer more casual fare for the home consoles. Some of the biggest titles to grace Xbox Live fall under the 'casual' label, including the first XBLA game to pass one million downloads, Uno. Leading third-party publisher EA even created EA Casual Games, a division so devoted to casual gaming it's being led by industry heavyweight Kathy Vrabeck, formerly the president of Activision. So don't feel weird when you discover the joys of Diner Dash or the addictive pinging of Peggle - everybody else is doing it, too.

7. Studies will indicate that violent video games encourage violent behavior, while other studies will indicate that that's a load of rubbish.

We've been playing violent video games since we lobbed our first salvo in Atari Combat and have yet to do anything more violent than trim our hangnails, but apparently this is still a hot-button issue. Back and forth they go, the scientists, with their fancy charts, white lab coats and odd testing practices, but we still have no definitive answer to the eternally debated question: "Are these games making us criminally insane, or what?"


WATCH ARMY OF TWO TRAILER NOW


WATCH DEVIL MAY CRY 4 TRAILER NOW

Last year saw hordes of studies deliver conflicting results, and there's no reason to think this abuse of the scientific method will hit the brakes in '08. Despite what you heard about Manhunt 2's ailing sales figures, plenty of violent games are already lined up to shed some virtual blood throughout the year, and should anyone so much as jaywalk during their launch windows, you can bet your memory cards that violent game studies will be touted all over the place. Can't we all just get along?

8. Duke Nukem Forever will still not come out.

Ten years and counting!


WATCH DUKE NUKEM FOREVER TRAILER NOW

Source