Some people love the opportunity to mix it up and flex different muscles. In fact, one of the Xbox 360’s first breakout hits was “Geometry Wars,” a pick-up-and-play game that’s still one of the system’s bestsellers.īut on the smaller teams that characterize much of the casual games industry, Joe Generalist is more valuable than Mr. The success of Xbox Live Arcade, which boasts 45 million games downloaded as of July, proves that the hardcore gamers like to play casual games, too. They grew up on titles like “Doom” and “Legend of Zelda.”They don’t want to make “Diner Dash” sequels that their mom might play.īut times are changing in the video game industry. Let’s face it: Most game developers are guys. That demographic may be one reason that core developers have been slow to migrate to the white-hot casual space. Not hardcore gamers, but rather the gals who stumbled across a promo for “Bookworm Adventures” on MSN and got hooked on the friendly, approachable gameplay. These were the soccer moms who were comfortable using their Visa card on Amazon and eBay. Initially, the majority of casual game buyers were women over 35. The genres in casual games are as varied as in the core space, although puzzles, card games and word games are among the most popular. Game portal sites abound on the Internet Yahoo Games, Real Arcade and MSN Games are some of the biggest. This try-before-you-buy model is the mainstay of the industry, although some still use the ad-supported approach.
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Today, gamers can sample titles like “Slingo” and “Cake Mania” for free before plunking down $20 to buy.
When the dotcom implosion happened, the few folks that were developing and distributing casual games had to try a different tactic to make money. These first offerings were supported by advertising, as most Internet content was back in those days. But as the Internet started to emerge, so too did online casual games. Think “Centipede." Think “Pac-Man.” These old-timers have much in common with today’s games - they had basic graphics, basic gameplay and were designed to be fun in short, quarter-fed bursts at the arcade.Ĭasual games faded into the background as game technology started moving toward 3-D and greater realism. That’s truly a joy.”Ĭasual games have been around since video games were invented. “But I’m still creating games that can be enjoyed by millions of people. “There’s not as much at stake compared to a triple-A retail title,” says Ellen Beeman, who worked in the core industry for many years before joining Microsoft’s casual games unit. And unlike the core space, where titles take three years and many millions to produce, the average casual game is a smaller affair, with shorter timelines, modest budgets and easygoing schedules. Revenues are expected to top $1 billion in 2007. The casual sector is the fastest-growing of the overall industry. These game-makers would do well to rethink their stereotypes.