The top 10 games industry trends of 2011

Posted December 14, 2011 by Kyle MacKinnon.

Feature: 2011 will go down as one of the more interesting years in gaming, with an amazing release lineup punctuated with dramatic moments from developers and fans alike. And there have been a number of trends we’ve witnessed in the industry at large this year – some good, some bad…

1. Good things come in threes

A number of AAA titles were released this year, and many happen to have a ’3′ on the end. Threequels aplenty have graced franchises like Just Dance, Battlefield, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Marvel vs. Capcom, Killzone, Resistance, Gears of War, Serious Sam, Uncharted, F.E.A.R., DiRT, Bejeweled, Saints Row, and Black Mirror. Europe also saw the third instalments of Arcana Hearts and Rune Factory make it to store shelves. There were certainly a share of other numbers in gaming this year – particularly 2s and 4s – but 3′s put the ‘triple’ back in ‘triple-A’.

2. Colour, come back

One of the biggest complaints about videogames, especially first-person shooters, is the lack of any hues asides from brown and grey. 2011 sought to change that as its FPS releases swapped out murky colours for a broader, more inviting palette. Killzone 3 started the trend but it was Gears of War 3 that did the best job of introducing more colours into its world this year. Gorgeous cartoon graphics also made a comeback with Rayman Origins, while de Blob 2 is all about restoring colour to an otherwise lifeless world.

3. Unlearned lessons in motion gaming

Despite having nearly five years to learn from Wii development, 2011 proved that many developers still don’t ‘get’ motion control and are content with ramming the same shovelware down the throats of PS3 and 360 owners, just as Wii owners have been getting since its launch. Few titles proved the capabilities of the Move controller, while even fewer proved that Kinect can nail motion controls. Indeed, Kinect has been better utilised by the modding community than game developers. And what of the few games that nailed motion controls for the year? First-party offerings from the big three like Killzone, Skyward Sword, and (now Microsoft-owned) Twisted Pixel’s The Gunstringer.

4. Bundles

You’ve already raced off to check out the Humble Bundle site, haven’t you? No, Humble doesn’t have anything on offer at the moment, but your very excitement says a lot: bundles are here to stay. Humble is the granddaddy of bundles and it offered some phenomenal indie bargains this year. In recent months, we’ve also seen the rise of Indie Royale – complete with its own twist of fluctuating pricing – as well as an Indie Game Music bundle. If you really must have a bundle now, you can pick up either the Indie Royale Xmas Bundle or Intermediaware’s Christmas Bundle.

5. Happy birthday

Not so much an industry-defined trend as it is coincidence, but this has been a year filled with big anniversaries. Unlike the boring 25th anniversary of the Mario games, developers have taken their series anniversaries seriously this year. Nintendo have treated The Legend of Zelda far better than the mustachioed plumber: it’s seen a full fledged orchestral tour, a free release of Four Swords Adventure, and, of course, the release of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword. Other anniversaries that weren’t taken lightly this year include Dragon Quest (25 years), Sonic (20 years), Tomb Raider (15 years), and Halo (ten years).

6. The fury

Temper tantrums abound this year. Review scores are at the heart of the issue, and Tom Chick’s 4/10 for Uncharted 3 certainly incited many rage fuelled rants. Jim Sterling’s 5/10 for Mario Kart 7 and Tom McShea’s 7.5/10 for Skyward Sword also caused a stir. Let’s not forget the controversy stemming from The Redner Group’s absolute meltdown over Duke Nukem scores, BeefJack’s unearthing of publisher threats over Two Worlds II reviews, as well as Cliffy B calling 8/10 reviews for Gears of War 3 ‘hateful’. Anger!

7. You’ve got rhythm

Rhythm gaming used to mean clunky peripherals occupying some forgotten corner of your house. Not so this year, as the guitar props tended to vanish in favour of both dancing games – like Just Dance 3 and Dance Central 2 – as well as more surreal experiences such as Groove Coaster and VidRhythm on the iOS devices. Activision’s announced hiatus of Guitar Hero earlier this year set the wheels in motion for this reverse trend.

8. Crowd-funding

Crowd-funding has seen a huge boost this year, thanks largely to Kickstarter. Offering various perks in exchange for small donations towards creating larger games is the idea here, and many consumers took the opportunity to fund games like Robots Love Ice Cream and Blade Symphony. Some games don’t get the funding they need from Kickstarter, but nonetheless, it serves as a great platform to build a fan-base and regroup funding. In the Dark: Puzzles Past Bedtime is but one example of this trend leaving the platform that has made crowd-funding so successful this year.

9. Free MMOs

If there’s a trend we can get behind, it’s the advent of free-to-play MMOs. Age of Conan, DC Universe Online, and, in a way, World of Warcraft all have free-to-play options. MMORPGs aren’t the only ones getting in on the action, as shooters like Global Agenda and Firefall released for free, while Valve’s seminal Team Fortress 2 switched to the model this year. It’s hard to imagine MMOs released in 2012 being able to charge out of the gate after the industry turn around this year.

10. Return to glory

A return to glory occurred this year for a number of videogame franchises that seemed to have had their day. Star Fox 64 3D, a remake through and through, feels like a great fit for the 3DS, and will serve as a great re-introduction to a series that’s seen middling games since the N64 days. Sonic the Hedgehog saw his return to glory as the blue blur teamed up with his older, pudgier self. Sonic Generations may just be the 3D Sonic game fans have been clamouring for. Both Rayman and Kirby saw very bright and colourful entries in their long-running series. The greatest return to glory belongs to a purple dragon named Spyro. Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure introduces the character to a new generation via relatively simple platformer appropriate for all ages. The hook is in the detailed cross-platform toys which are sure to be a smash hit this holiday season.

Those are just ten of the trends we witnessed in the videogame industry this year. Did we miss any? Or do you think we missed the mark? Sound off on these trends in the comments.