Today’s entertainment landscape is completely different than it was in Hollywood’s Golden Age of the ’30s and ’50s.
Nowadays film is just one competitor in the ocean of entertainment.
Although it is the biggest there is, a dark shadow hanging over the Hollywoodland sign: the video game industry.
Video gaming is quickly becoming the biggest market in terms of entertainment around the world, and there is good reason.
With a common video game, which will run you around $60, you can get anywhere from six to 20 hours of playtime and can often play with more than one person at any given time.
In contrast, going to the theater to watch a film is a completely different situation.
To see the hottest new flick with your significant other, it will most likely cost you more than $20 without any popcorn or snacks, which are a must for any moviegoer, for just two hours of usually dull entertainment.
This is the biggest advantage gaming has over movies, but not the only one.
Want to go to the movies? Check the list. Does “Scream 4” sound appealing? How about “Hop?” Yeah, I didn’t think so.
In the gaming market at the moment, there are plenty of titles to look forward to, and ones that you’ll for sure get everything you want out of them.
Games like “Mortal Kombat” and “Portal 2” will keep you going for months, and that’s just the upper echelon of the market.
New releases are commonly good in the industry, at least the bigger ones.
But there are always games out there that if you haven’t played already you can pick up and enjoy more than any movie that has been out for a while.
Although there are great movies that are being pumped out yearly, they just don’t provide the content that I’m looking for.
This past year, great films came out. “Social Network” was great, “The King’s Speech” was magnificent, “127 Hours” impressed. But at the same time, I was constantly left wanting more.
and that’s when Hollywood brings sequels to the table and completely ruin the first.
I don’t know the solution to the film industry’s problems, I only know what will be the downfall: high expenses to watch especially compared to the competition, and cheesy fads like 3D that make the industry look like they don’t take the important parts seriously, such as plot progression and acting.
Video games also have the benefit of finishing their stories, and even telling multiple stories within a single game.
With movies it often takes two or three to tell a complete story, which didn’t use to be the case, but this changed dramatically when special effects evolved (Hint: “Terminator”).
Video games will often consist of so much more progression in plot than in your everyday movie.
The moment video game producers started taking voice acting seriously the quality of the product jumped way past any film of the day, and if it continues film will be overcame.