The Explosion of 'Presence' at the new CES Gaming Zone
For the first time in the history of the show a significant number of games will be unveiled at CES, a milestone mark nobody was anticipating so soon after the creation of the Gaming Zone but that suggests that E3 is no longer the obvious choice as the venue for reveals.
Our source at the CEA indicates that the number of games being presented at CES for the XBLA and PSN platforms has exploded, as have games for digital distribution service like Steam; the newest player on the block -- OnLive -- which is built upon a cloud computing, gaming-on-demand platform, will include competition at the show, with several new companies that will offer similar services exhibiting in 2012, with cellphone giant Verizon expected to make a significant announcement about its new and expanded operations in that sector at the show.
There is still no "official" word as to whether Nintendo will be returning in force to CES next year, but the smart money says yes if only because of the Wii U and its new bleeding edge controller. It has been confirmed that dozens of gaming companies supporting the Wii U and perhaps twice again as many making games for the 3DS will be exhibiting with varying levels of support from Nintendo, which means that even when the Japanese gaming giant is not present it is still well represented.
Gaming Update will be keeping a close eye on the Nintendo > CES situation and will keep you informed as news develops.
The Future of Gaming
Between gaming-on-demand, digital distribution, and the expansion of new game distribution systems on the major cell phone services, the gaming universe is changing, but not so fast that it will leave behind the traditional retail boxes that most games still come in. The most significant change in the industry after digital and on-demand gaming is CES itself, and the share of the market it is taking from E3 and the smaller but well-established events.
In the past few months industry insiders have been rethinking their approach to the traditional PR cycle for gaming, with many publishers and game studios now considering CES to be the most logical venue for promoting their titles that release in the first half of the year, while E3 will retain its place as the reveal and announcement venue for the second half of the year -- a sea-change that radically alters the traditional perceptions that CES was an expense that did not pay enough dividends in either PR or sales to make it worth their while.
The addition of the Gaming Zone to CES translates into a game-changing event (if you will pardon the pun) and the fact that it is now being viewed as a solid venue for promoting games and new releases for the first half of the calendar year, combined with the major increase in development studio and publisher presence at the event means that it is more than just a trend, and is certainly a situation that warrants coverage and analysis.
Gaming Update will keep an eye on the situation -- and keep you informed -- so stay tuned to GU and keep an eye out for news and articles that are flagged with "CES" to stay on top of events and the news.
Will the additional news and announcements at CES each January influence your game buying habits? Please leave a comment below sharing your opinion on these new developments and what it all means to you as a gamer and consumer!
Tags: Xbox 360, Wii U, Wii, PSP, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 3, PC, Nintendo DS, 3DS, XBLA, PSN, Kinect, CES 2011,
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