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Games Sales Overtake DVD Sales In The US

kotaku.com — h goodie, another bound-to-be-misconstrued "games are bigger/better than X" story! This time, it's the results of the Entertainment Merchants Association's annual report, which reveals that not only did games rake in more cash than movie theatres last year, but for the first time DVD sales as well.

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  • zdiddy85, on 07/03/2008, -0/+14I know that I've purchased probably 20-30 games this year alone.

    And I've bought one movie, "Be Kind Rewind", which I kind of regret buying..
    • D14BL0, on 07/04/2008, -0/+8Not to derail a whole lot, but what's the general opinion of this movie? I don't remember seeing any promotion for it whatsoever, just a whole bunch of ads for it on the On Demand channels lately. I can't imagine it being that great if I don't even remember seeing a single commercial for it being in theaters.
    • hellahyphy, on 07/04/2008, -6/+1that movie looks terrible.
  • kjd84, on 07/03/2008, -2/+34Buy Movie???
  • inajeep, on 07/03/2008, -1/+31I buy both. Yes I know. I have slowed down buying movies for two reasons.

    1. Not interested in the current crop of hollywood crap.
    2. They jacked the prices up.

    I continue to buy more games because they are more entertaining and you get much more value out of them than a movie.
    • Ajajadude, on 07/04/2008, -1/+1Prices went up? If anything, I've been paying less than usual lately. Where you buying your movies from? 7/11?
    • prophetpimp, on 07/04/2008, -0/+1i stopped buying movies but increased purchases for TV Show DVD. Have a complete collection of south park and my BSG collection is just missing 1 season.
    • B3000, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2Jacked the prices up? If you're buying blu-ray I guess. Except for new releases most SD DVDs are between five and ten bucks these days. That's dirt cheap. It's also the reason that games rack up higher $ totals - they usually cost five to ten times more.
    • solid12345, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2I hardly think prices went up, the price of DVD's are at an all-time low, I saw new releases at wal-mart for 10 bucks which would have gone for 20-25 a few years back.

  • nafai, on 07/03/2008, -1/+5Hmm... the Entertainment Merchants Association would be a biased source for this dontcha think?

    But yeah, I've spent about 10x more on games then DVDs in the last year.

    Many games are becoming interactive movies... why just passively watch a movie when you can be in your own?
    • B3000, on 07/04/2008, -0/+11. Because the stories being told in even the best narrative games are still laughably written and poorly acted. And I say that as a huge fan of games and game narratives. I've played through all the GTA games and not one can hold a candle to the stories and characters found in the best movies of their comparative genres; Scarface, Godfather, Boyz n tha Hood, Menace II society, Mean Streets, The Departed, King of New York, Donnie Brasco, Miller's Crossing, Goodfellas, Heat... While GTA offers playabillity and immersion, movies offer genuine emotion, great acting, characters with real depth and the abillity to actually move you.

      I've played through all the Metal Gears and without exception, they were fun games with inventive characters and occasionally exciting cut scenes but their convoluted mess of a story is complete crap and Kojima's simplistic political themes (ie. War is BAD) are no substitute for narrative cohesion. Again, the best movies in their comparative genres, be it the Bond films, The Bourne films, The Paralax View, Three Days of the Condor, The Manchurian Candidate, North by Northwest, Mission Impossible, Breach, The Day of The Jackal... They all do it better than Snake when it comes to telling a story.

      Resident Evil? While I honestly think RE2 is a really solid B-Movie narative and probably the best in it's class, it is still at the level of B-Movie. In depth, nuance, dialog, acting, etc it doesn't compare with The Shining, The Exorcist, Rosemary's Baby, Jacob's Ladder, Night of the Living Dead, The Thing, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Jaws...

      No Final Fantasy or Elder Scrolls game has moved me the way the Lord of The Rings films, or Star Wars or even ***** Willow did.

      No game has mad me laugh as hard as any good film comedy and when was the last time a game moved you like The Shawshank Redemption?

      I've had great times playing games, but in all my years I've never once been genuinely moved by once beyond base level responses such as excitement or fear. The closest they've come for me is maybe Shadow of the Collossus, Ico, or Silent Hill 2, but even those just moved me in comparasin to other videogames, not movies or books.

      2. When you give the player control of the story it becomes an active experience, and sometimes people want a passive experience.

      The active experince is one which does not hold as many surprises because the viewer/player is in direct control of what is taking place and is guiding the action toward their chosen goal. Unless it is in a cut-scene, you will never be shocked by the choices the character makes, because it is you that is making the choices. You will never exclaim "Why did my character just shoot that guy?" because you are the one who made him do it. While this is exactly the thing that games offer that makes them different from movies or books and it is the greatest strength of narrative gaming, it is also one of the things that gives a passive narrative continued relevance.

      A good storyteller can precisely craft a passive narrative to manipulate the audience the way they want - to guide them through a pre-planned emotional journey. This works specifically because the audience is NOT in control. The more choice and control a person has over the narrative they are involved in the less the storyteller is able to challenge them or guide their experience to create the utmost impact. Even in a failry linear narrative game such as Resident Evil 2, where moral character choices and freedom are practically nill, the effectiveness of the narrative to elicit the sought after emotions is hampered by the addition of game elements. It's hard to be scared anymore when you've backtracked through a million rooms for two hours looking for some place to put the damned eagle crest already. As a passive audience member, the novelist or filmmaker can pace your experience to create the greatest reaction. And they can take you someplace you can't imagine or don't want to go, simply because you have no say in the matter.

      All that said, the simplest argument for a passive narrative is that sometimes you want to just sit back and take something in. Let someone else do the work for a little while. Whereas a game requires your motivation and determination to move forward, a movie picks you up and carries you along.
  • yargthepirate, on 07/03/2008, -2/+19"games took in $18.85 billion"
    This is just the retail sales, which doesn't even include monthly fees for games, which equals (approximately) another 7 trillion dollars for WoW alone. It probably doesn't include digital download services like Steam and Direct2Drive either.
    • taxman, on 07/03/2008, -5/+67 trillion???!! Really?? For your sake, i hope that was some kinda of a Pop culture reference i am missing cos i am too old.
      • santaliqueur, on 07/04/2008, -1/+12It's an exaggeration. Lay off the question marks.
      • Sairgem, on 07/04/2008, -1/+7Old? Obvious exaggeration flies over your head, and you type like a 12 year old girl. Old my ass.
      • prophetpimp, on 07/04/2008, -0/+1around a 2 billion more.
  • CollapseControl, on 07/03/2008, -2/+4With all the alternative ways to watch movies this is no big surprise.

    I have over 700 DVDs, so i've been known to buy a lot, but even I have toned it down. Pretty much it has to be a movie I absolutley know i'll love to purchase. I think the last DVD buy from me was THE MIST.

    As for Video Games, I have to purchase them, I don't like renting them, *****, I don't even like borrowing them from friends. If I want the to play the game I will purchase it so I don't have to force myself to play it.
    • einrobstein, on 07/04/2008, -0/+6Well we all can't be millionaires. I'm not even a hundredaire right now.
    • battletrax, on 07/05/2008, -0/+1700 dvds.

      Can you lend me some money?
  • jestro, on 07/03/2008, -10/+7This is completely false. ***** Kotaku.
  • razorc03, on 07/03/2008, -0/+23At $60 dollars a pop for games, I'm really not that surprised.
    • sonicjosh, on 07/05/2008, -0/+1Well, I look at it like this:
      Movie - $20 1.5-3.0 hours
      Game- $60 usually 5-60 hours, add online and number of hours increases greatly; I have more than 2 days on COD4 (have a friend with 8), and on ratchet: deadlock and up your arsenal I probably have 1-2 weeks online.

      So, value of game > movie.
  • estvir, on 07/04/2008, -1/+17http://kotaku.com/5021932/not-so-fast-gaming-dvd-s ...
  • viacombusta, on 07/04/2008, -4/+3Thanks for the useless biased info!
  • kalv, on 07/04/2008, -6/+0People are still buying games and movies?
  • Netik09, on 07/04/2008, -4/+2Gamefly and Netflix save me all sorts of money. Unlimited rentals ftw!
  • hellahyphy, on 07/04/2008, -6/+4Wii games are $50 a piece.
  • handheldchimp, on 07/04/2008, -4/+4I can't remember the last time I used "Buy" and "Movie" in the same sentence.
    • reed311, on 07/04/2008, -6/+1Congrats, you are a hero. Nothing like cheating copyright holders out of their due and proper.
      • handheldchimp, on 07/04/2008, -0/+3I have the Blockbuster Rental Pass where I can rent two movies out at the same time and hold them for as long as I want for like $25 a month.

        I haven't bought a movie in like 2 years, but my family and I rent like 6 movies a week.
      • WoollyMittens, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2Who says he is actually watching movies ASSHAT. I don't buy movies related to the MPAA, but I also don't watch them. Does that make me a filthy thief in your eyes too?
  • AZRoboto, on 07/04/2008, -0/+17This is a false report. This includes hardware, accessories, and software.

    The DVD side only includes DVDs... Not exactly a fair comparison when hundreds of thousands of machines that cost $250-$500 are being sold, as well as games that cost between $50-$70.

    The bottom of the article: "Update: Turns out that those game sales numbers include hardware and accessories too."
    • handheldchimp, on 07/04/2008, -0/+5Now if we were to go throw in every single DVD capable player into the DVD sales, DVDs would be kicking gaming's ass.
  • diskit, on 07/04/2008, -0/+10Movies are SO much easier to pirate than games these days...
  • chapoec, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2Come on they had an update.
    http://kotaku.com/5021932/not-so-fast-gaming-dvd-s ...
  • Sairgem, on 07/04/2008, -1/+1Edit: Wow this was supposed to be a response, not a whole new comment.
  • WoollyMittens, on 07/04/2008, -0/+3So, are we gamers relevant yet? Or do we still play murderpornsimulators according to the media?

    Oh wait... the movie companies will blame this on piracy of course. It just means we need MORE asinine laws to enforce their business-model.
  • peestandingup, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2Because games have a lot more long term value than a movie.
  • insomniac8400, on 07/04/2008, -1/+1I bet GTA 4 accounted for a couple billion, thus putting video games over the top. Next year dvds will probably move back on top.
  • shyner, on 07/04/2008, -0/+3Well... yeah. Games are more expensive, and most movies suck these days anyway.
    • Gregus1032, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2yea, maybe 2 movies a year come out that are worth watching.... if we're lucky.
  • jman583, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2I helped.
  • Cockslap, on 07/04/2008, -0/+0Netflix > Buying
  • medfreak, on 07/04/2008, -1/+3Games are:
    1. Far more immersive. I still remember the first Silent Hill game I played. There is not a single thing that could ever come in a movie that could spook you as such.

    2. Far more value for money. The worst game by current standards should at least last more than 10 hours, while the lengthiest movie may not exceed 3 1/2 hours. Of course at the risk of becomming excessively boring.

    3. Although this is not a huge factor, but it is still a factor. I can imagine movies to be hit more by piracy than games. While you could have an almost perfect movie experience from a 700 mb DVD rip, you are not guaranteed the same experience downloading a much larger 3-8 GB game, because of the exceedingly expensive hardware requirements.
  • pearlygate, on 07/04/2008, -1/+3obligatory ***** MPAA
  • HumanRecalled, on 07/04/2008, -1/+4DUGG DOWN !! FOR *****! Digg me down all you want but this is BS !

    DVD Market Still Trouncing Game Software Sales
    http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/53457


    Contrary to previous reports that US game sales had surpassed those of DVD movies in 2007, the Entertainment Merchants Association revealed that DVDs still hold a "substantial lead" over game software.

    According to Kotaku, the EMA said that the data from sales tracking firm NPD showing $18.85 billion in game sales includes software, hardware, and game accessories, while DVD sales—raking in $16 billion in 2007—accounts only for DVDs.

    The software portion of the $18.85 billion in total game sales amounts to roughly $8.64 billion, marking a still significant lead for DVD sales over video games.

    The data does not account for game rentals, used game sales or the revenue generated by online gaming subscriptions. The NPD recently announced its intentions to track online subscription sales, discovering some $1 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2008 alone.
  • Zippo, on 07/04/2008, -1/+2This is a no-brainer, really. DVDs contain a movie and maybe a few movie clip bonus features. Occasionally they'll include a crappy DVD mini-game. So, in general the interactivity is limited, if not non-existent. Re-playability is even further limited... nothing is going to change the 2nd time you watch a movie, short of maybe watching it with commentary the 2nd time around.

    Meanwhile, video games are interactive from start to finish (well, except games like Xenosaga), many have a lot of re-playability, and often are a little different every time you play. They're just more enjoyable.
    And with gaming being extended to a much larger audience these days, thanks in part to the Wii and DS, there are more gamers than ever.

    Also, movies are lot easier and simpler to download and watch for free. You can download and watch a movie on just about any computer with 'net access. Short of modding and hacking your console, you *have* to buy the game to play it.
  • solid12345, on 07/04/2008, -0/+2Why buy DVDs?

    Anymore I just rent movies on my cablebox for 3.99 because I don't want to pay to own a movie I just want to see once.
  • jerrycan, on 07/04/2008, -1/+1I myself download more movies than game...
  • mrdjames, on 07/04/2008, -1/+1Plus, if you consider the replay value, most games over time actually give you more bang for your buck, Heck, COD4 now costs me about 1 penny per hour considering I've played over 10 days.
  • M724, on 07/06/2008, -0/+1Is there any surprise here? Stop and think about it for a moment. Let's look at some heavy hitters in the movies, off the top of my head: Indiana Jones, Iron Man, Star Trek, Spiderman, Lord of the Rings, the new Batman movies, Wall-E, Saw, etc...

    Some of the heavy hitters we have on the gaming front: Metal Gear Solid 4, Halo 3, Gears of War (1 and 2), Grand Theft Auto 4, Call of Duty 4, Battlefield Bad Company, Supreme Commander, Ninja Gaiden 2, World of Warcraft, Resident Evil, Crysis, Wii Fit, Uncharted, Ratchet & Clank, Overlord, Spore, Little Big Planet, Fire Emblem, Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Mario Galaxy, Red Alert 3, Resistance: Fall of Man, Dead Rising, etc...

    Do you have any doubts now?
  • stiffman88, on 07/06/2008, -0/+0you can download and play any of your favorite games on all formats at http://www.downloadanygameonline.com you can download any game there. its awesome. save a heap of money on buying games
  • mmitchum, on 07/07/2008, -0/+0GTA:4 was worth it, as was BioShock. Let's hope spore is good, maybe it'll bring some creativity back to the gaming industry.
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