Games Industry Wire

Today I’ve chosen to interview a friend of mine. David White is a Student at Georgia Southern University currently working on his masters degree in history. He’s what some of us would describe as old-school gamer; however, he is up-to-date on his gaming industry news and has some good opinions.

Sorry that I don’t have a picture of David, but you’re welcome to go visit his profile on mooble.com

Describe when you first started to play video games

I have been playing video games since I was about 5. That’s when my family got a NES. I did play some Atari too but not a lot. At 5 I thought super Mario was the greatest thing in the world when I first saw it I was blown away.

What would you do if you were a CEO of a company?

I would try to hire creative people and give them room to expand the boundaries of gaming. I would rather put out great quality games that helped shape the future of gaming rather than make a lot of money.

What game (series) would you retire?

Well I loved mega man 2 and 3 but aren’t they on like 79 by now? Seriously though, any time they just start churning out the exact same game over and over I would say its time to move on. But as long as the game play evolves with each installment I don’t have a problem with sequels

Where do you see the gaming industry going in the next 5yrs?

I think on-line gaming will continue to grow. Other than that it will be like most 5 year cycles. There will be a few games that will come up with something new and blow everyone away and most others will copy that.

How has online gaming changed the gaming industry?

I think it has given a lot of games infinite amounts of replayability. I grew up playing games with my brothers and friends so I am a very social gamer. I am more likely to play and play longer if I have someone to compete against or cooperate with. There are probably a lot of people out there like this who have greatly benefited from online gaming. Also it has brought the gamers a little closer to the development community with all of the online content. Gamers can now offer feedback and see patches to fix problems and add new gameplay twists.

What decision has upset you the most in the gaming world?

I don’t know of any one instance the upsets me however I wish the community as a whole would strive to be recognized as a legitimate art form. I know several game makers do this and within any community of people creating “art” you have these people and then you have the ones who copy them. Take Hollywood for example. There are good movies but there are many more that are shabby knockoffs of other good movies. But since film is an establish art form in people’s minds the community as a whole can get by with it. But people who are not very familiar with video games look in from the outside and they don’t see art. They just see some controversy and a lot of mediocre games.

What makes or breaks a gaming company?

The games. If your games suck your company sucks

Are you more of a console or PC gamer? List favorite games of each

I enjoy both formats but I’m mostly a console gamer. I use the pc for strategy and some rpg’s. On the pc I love Civ 3 (I haven’t played cave 4 yet), Neverwinter Nights, and the age of empire’s series. As for console games right now I think halo 2 multiplayer is still one of the best gaming experiences. I enjoy most sports games, most first party Nintendo titles and some rpgs. I do not have and Xbox 360 yet but I’m looking forward to oblivion.

Which next gen console will you most-likely buy?

Eventually I will get a 360 and I will also most likely a Nintendo revolution. I want to see it in action first though

Thanks for talking with me David. I hope you can get your hands on a next generation console soon

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