Video games are dying and not for the reasons you think: Reader's Feature

A reader warns that younger gamers aren't interested in traditional Computer Games and that they are the ones driving change in the sector.

In recent weeks we've had a Reader's Feature claiming that traditional console-style video games have become a thing only for older fans and another suggesting so only younger people, who have more time to spare, can appreciate them more. Both were responding to the events of recent months, in which both Microsoft and Sony seemed to signal a move towards multi-format releases and away from consoles – or at least not taking center stage as usual.

Who knows what they're actually up to, because they certainly aren't telling us, but it's clear that something has changed. The costs of making games are clearly part of that, but they've been rising slowly for decades, so that's not enough to cause this sudden, seemingly panicky, change in approach.

I think both previous articles were wrong, although they both hit the actual problem. The problem is that kids just don't like console video games anymore, not in the way that previous generations did.

Before everyone writes that their child has a console and loves it, it is clear that not everyone is the same. And Nintendo stuff is especially popular with younger kids, but once they get into their teens and beyond, they start enjoying Roblox and Minecraft, before moving on to Fortnite and eventually GTA Online, as well as other free online shooters.

None of these are what most people would consider traditional console games, even though they can be played on a console. But the problem isn't really the size, even though it seems clear that more and more younger gamers are sticking to a phone and PC and nothing else.

The problem is that they only play two or three different games and seem to have no interest in playing, or certainly paying for, traditional single player games. That's all left to older gamers and once they're gone, I don't think there's any evidence that today's young people will suddenly become single-player fans when they turn 30.

For those growing up today, video games are Fortnite and Roblox. Where we used to have wars about Nintendo versus Sega or PlayStation versus Xbox, that's an irrelevant question to them. They're just interested in meeting their friends on the social platform of their choice, which also happens to be a video game.

They are not interested in buying the latest new games that get good reviews, they just play the latest fan-made games in Roblox or buy a new skin in Fortnite. Both have gone far beyond just one game and are essentially platforms in their own right. Far more people play Roblox and Fortnite than own a console and that's the future, not the PlayStation 6 and beyond.

If they're interested in something single-player, they're much more likely to see someone else play it on Twitch or YouTube than try it themselves, it's just not an idea that even really occurs to them.

And it's not just children. You also see it among adult gamers. GTA Online has been one of the most popular games in the world for over a decade, with several different game modes, from shooters to racers. Or there's Rainbow Six Siege, which is just one game, but is so popular that the developers say there will never be a sequel. And even that pales in comparison to free PC games like Counter-Strike and League Of Legends.

Some people will still make the games that we – the kind of people who are likely to read this article – like, whether they are indie developers or a prestige product from a major publisher, but it will become less and less every year, until it is a complete niche.

Maybe one of the big live service games will fall out of favor or be replaced by a new one, but that won't change the overall situation: most younger gamers will still play the same handful of games forever, with no interest in anything else. further than that.

I believe Microsoft and Sony already realize that and that explains their recent actions. However, I don't think they can compensate for this massive change in the way people play games and things will only get bleaker for traditional games from here on out.

By reader Ashton Marley

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