Category Archives: Gamasutra

Zynga’s IPO: What Went Wrong?

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After its first day on the NASDAQ, Zynga’s performance has been less-than-impressive, and Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris takes a moment to figure out exactly what went awry.

Shares in Zynga’s Wall Street debut may have started strong today, but minutes after they began trading, the stock’s pricing chart looked like something that even the most extreme skier would have avoided.

By the time all was said and done, the company was down 5 percent, closing at $9.50 per share (and was down as much as 10 percent at one point during the day), bucking the trend of the year’s other hot internet stocks, like LinkedIn and Groupon — despite the fact that Zynga is profitable, while those companies are not. What went wrong?

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The Best Things To Happen To Games In 2011 (According To Analysts)

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[Looking back at 2011, several analysts discuss the game industry’s best highlights last year with Gamasutra, from the mainstream’s acceptance of mobile gaming to subscription service risks paying off.]

Ask a gamer about the best thing to happen in the video game industry in 2011 and you’re likely to get a title as the answer. That’s natural, since players are generally more concerned about the final product than industry trends.

Ask a Wall Street analyst, though, and that’s not necessarily the first thing that springs to mind. So once again this year, we polled some of the highest profile and most respected industry analysts to get their thoughts about the most exuberant and disappointing events to happen in gaming this year.

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Zynga Shows Street Smarts With IPO Plan

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[Though Zynga’s upcoming $1 billion IPO is lower than expected based on previous reports and market cap valuations, Gamasutra’s Chris Morris explains why the company is playing it smart with its low share prices.]

Five months after announcing its intention to go public, Zynga is about to make the splash, but it’s doing so with a much smaller splash than most people expected back in July.

Back then, when the market was teasing investors with a head fake of stability, analysts, and the financial media (along with most of the gaming industry) expected the company to raise between $1.5 and $2 billion – with an accompanying market cap of $15 billion and $20 billion. But when shares begin trading Dec. 16, the company will only seek $1 billion – and have a maximum market cap of $7 billion.

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Opinion: ESRB Mobile App Initiative Underscores Industry Power Shift

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Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris picks apart the ESRB’s recent push into the mobile app space, and wonders how these ratings will fare without Apple and Android’s support.

While you have to admire the Entertainment Software Ratings Board’s push into the mobile app space, it’s hard not to be disappointed with Tuesday’s joint announcement with CTIA.

Getting AT&T, Microsoft, Sprint, T-Mobile USA, U.S. Cellular and Verizon Wireless on board is a step, yes, but it’s akin to announcing a new Grand Theft Auto that’s being made by first year game development students. It sounds great, until you think about it for a couple seconds.

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Black Friday: The Good, The Bad And The Ugly

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Gamasutra editor-at-large Chris Morris has two Black Friday lessons: 1.) Never risk going to Walmart for Black Friday deals and 2.) People are definitely responding to video game sales this year.

Forget televisions and laptops. Judging by the fervor and numbers, Black Friday 2011 was all about video games. Unfortunately, thanks to a few boneheaded bargain hunters, it was a shopping day that would do nothing to help the industry’s image among mainstream shoppers.

Video game violence was all over the news this weekend, but it had nothing to do with Modern Warfare 3 or GTA. This time, it was the people buying games that were going postal.

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Opinion: Cutting Through The Hype On The ‘Xbox 720’ Rumors

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Looking at recent rumors of the Xbox 360’s successor supposedly poised to surface soon, Gamasutra’s Chris Morris explains why neither consumers nor publishers should really want a next generation at this point.

New consoles are one of the favorite topics of the rumor mill – and over the past couple of weeks, the system has been grinding out a seemingly endless stream of speculation and anonymously tipped whispers about the next generation.

Microsoft, specifically, has been in the spotlight, with several reports saying the company plans to unveil the Xbox 720 (or Xbox Next or whichever clever naming scheme you prefer) as early as next year – and perhaps release it before the next holiday sales rush.

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Dan Houser On How Rockstar Does It

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Rockstar Games co-founder and vice president of creative Dan Houser doesn’t spend a lot of time on the interview circuit, and you’ll almost never find him on a panel of industry experts. Instead, he prefers to let the company’s work do the talking.

In this rare interview, Houser outlines how the company makes its decisions — from booting Max Payne into the future to deciding not to give players much of a window into its games prior to their release. He also discusses lessons learned from Red Dead Redemption and the creative bible for the Grand Theft Auto series.

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Black Friday: The Pros And Cons For Game Companies

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In this analysis, Gamasutra editor Chris Morris asks if this year’s post-Thanksgiving Black Friday sales will provide a notable boost for the gaming industry, and if it will actually hurt the industry more than it helps.

As happens every year around this time, circulars advertising post-Thanksgiving “Black Friday” deals from major retailers are starting to leak online – and, as always, the gaming deals are pretty phenomenal.

A Wii for $100? Batman: Arkham City and Gears of War 3 for $30? It’s enough to tempt even the most cynical shoppers to bravely venture forth into the retail madness that is Black Friday.

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Analysts Mixed On Holiday Outlook

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With the holiday season fast approaching, analysts chime in with their game sales predictions, noting that the core gamer is “the demographic to watch this year” and examining the software battle for third place.

Gamers might be celebrating a horn of gaming plenty this holiday season, but it’s still up in the air if retailers will be cheering along.

The fourth quarter of 2011 has one of the most impressive lineups of titles in years. And it’s off to what seems to be a good start.Gears of War 3 sold 3 million copies in its first week. Battlefield 3 hit 5 million in that time. And the launch of Modern Warfare 3 will top that.

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Activision’s Skylanders Attracts Core, Kid Gamers Alike

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[Activision Publishing CEO Eric Hirshberg talks with Gamasutra about bringing new life to the Spyro series with Skylanders, and how the company’s toy-based approach with the game could pay off big.]

Over the course of its history, the Spyro the Dragon series has sold more than 20 million software units. But like any 13-year old franchise, it was getting a little long in the tooth – and had long since lost any qualities of a cutting-edge video game.

The October release of Skylanders: Spyro’s Adventure has changed that, though. By combining physical action figures with a unique peripheral and a video game, the title has captured the attention of the mass market (and more than a few core gamers). While sales figures aren’t yet available, the game has buzz – often a critical factor in long-term success.

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