Gamers to Benefit from Hollywood-Video Game Union

Hollywood may have seen signs of imminent doom when a stronger and more aggressive video game industry ballooned into a staggering $11 billion industry. Analysts even boldly declared that the video game industry is now king of the entertainment world, surpassing Tinseltown in generating entertainment revenues. The unthinkable happened and Hollywood, instead of sulking in its glitzy corner, turned a very bad situation into a very lucrative partnership.
 
Once touted as the ancillary source of revenue for Hollywood, the video game industry is now competing head on with its famous big brother Hollywood, and gaining more advantage as it turns on its charms to lure the movie-going public away from the theaters. It has done so with great success. Thanks to the release of heavyweights in the later part of 2004:  Doom 3 (August), The Sims 2 (September), Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (October), Halo 2, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Half-Life 2 (all in November). And to add insult to the Hollywood injury, the industry released Halo 2, the sequel to the wildly popular Microsoft Xbox game. Within 24 hours, Microsoft sold 2.38 million copies, which translate into $125 million, beating HollywoodÂ’s biggest opening weekend movie – Spider-man. The video game industry never looked back since then.

Hollywood may have seen signs of imminent doom when a stronger and more aggressive video game industry ballooned into a staggering $11 billion industry. Analysts even boldly declared that the video game industry is now king of the entertainment world, surpassing Tinseltown in generating entertainment revenues. The unthinkable happened and Hollywood, instead of sulking in its glitzy corner, turned a very bad situation into a very lucrative partnership.
 
Once touted as the ancillary source of revenue for Hollywood, the video game industry is now competing head on with its famous big brother Hollywood, and gaining more advantage as it turns on its charms to lure the movie-going public away from the theaters. It has done so with great success, thanks to the release of heavyweights in the later part of 2004:  Doom 3 (August), The Sims 2 (September), Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas (October), Halo 2, Metroid Prime 2: Echoes, and Half-Life 2 (all in November). And to add insult to the Hollywood injury, the industry released Halo 2, the sequel to the wildly popular Microsoft Xbox game. Within 24 hours, Microsoft sold 2.38 million copies, which translates into $125 million, beating HollywoodÂ’s biggest opening weekend movie – Spider-man. The video game industry never looked back since then.

With defeat comes a great idea. Hollywood, armed with pride and determination to bring back its lost glory, has set the wheels in motion. Instead of competing with its magnanimous little brother, Hollywood chose to embrace the video game industry to siphon some of its earnings back into the Hollywood coffers. It has done so in the past, but not in the magnitude that we know now. To kick off the campaign, Hollywood used star power to leave some sort of territorial mark on the video games based on movies that are popular or have achieved box office success. Stars have lent their voices and likeness to add to that territorial marking. Marlon Brando lending his voice for The Godfather The Game, Pierce Brosnan for James Bond titles, Cameron Diaz for Shrek, and the list goes on and on.

Hollywood doesnÂ’t mind bowing down to the dictates of the video game industry, as long as steady flow of money is guaranteed in doing so. Back in the days, video games are made based on the movies, but now, movies are made based on popular games. We now anticipate Halo and DoomÂ’s debut in film. Instead of banking on the popularity of movie franchises, Hollywood is banking on the popularity of game titles of current- and next-generation consoles (PS2, PS3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Nintendo Revolution, Nintendo DS).

Surprisingly, Hollywood is not too blinded by the profits. The games based on movies boast of high quality graphics, authentic realism, and a gameplay that guarantees additional hours of playing time. The movie and video game industries are determined to give consumers their moneyÂ’s worth. It seems Hollywood is set out to erase traces of embarrassment caused by its own complacency. Another failure is not an option.

One good gauge that Hollywood and the video game industry are doing something right is the fact that consumers no longer differentiate the movies they watch from the games they play. There is no more conscious effort to compare or to pit one format against another. This is because producers and directors of the movie are the same people who create the games. Take for instance UbisoftÂ’s King Kong. The game based on Peter JacksonÂ’s movie is a certified hit. Peter JacksonÂ’s involvement in the development of the game played a big part in the success of the game. The game did not compete with the movie, but complemented it instead.

Instead of just being mere adaptations of the movie, the games offer new things that gamers can explore. This is the same for Lord of the Rings titles, Star Wars, Spider-Man, The Matrix, etc. With the advent of next-gen consoles, particularly, PS3 and Nintendo Revolution, we can expect more high quality games that promise a more immersive experience. The Xbox 360 is set to  bring gamers closer to that experience with The Godfather The Game, Jaws, and Lord of the Rings.

The marriage of the entertainment stalwarts is in its early stages but we can now see a very profitable union ahead. But looking beyond the profits, the squabbles, and the politics, the benefits of the merger will trickle down to the ultimate kingmakers, the consumers. And when they speak, the industry (whether movie or video game) should listen.