Chris Cole

As video gaming continues to evolve, the market for video gaming evolves as well. Technology continues to redefine the way we spend our money. GameStop, a primary retail store for video games recently announced that they are closing over 200 stores across the country. Many video gamers have been buying their games digitally, as opposed to buying a physical copy in stores. According to Business Insider, GameStop is “…applying a more definitive, analytic approach, including profit levels and sales transferability, that we expect will yield a much larger tranche of closures over the coming 12 to 24 months,” Jim Bell, GameStop CFO, said on Tuesday. GameStop is trying to manage its budget while they breath new life into the gaming chain. GameStop has a lot of competition. Digital video game purchases are made to feel so much more convenient. Like physical CD’s, soon video games will be primarily streamed/downloaded on the internet. The past few years have been rough for GameStop, they have continued to fire people, their sales were down 14.3% and throughout the year the company has lost 415 $million. Hopefully, GameStop can evolve with the times and provide their customers with an experience that makes going to GameStop worth it.

Last week CD Projekt RED, the development company behind games like The Witcher 3 and the upcoming, Cyberpunk 2077, released a demo video showing Cyberpunk fans the new additions the game has to offer. In this “deep dive” demo, we can see more of the character/class creation, learn about one of the cities located in the game and we get a better explanation of Keanu Reeves’ character, Johnny Silverhand.
So far, we know that Cyberpunk 2077 is going to be a big, story-driven open-world role-playing game that encourages players to make a variety of dialogue/character choices that not only impact your character and your story but also impact the world your character lives in. Cyberpunk follows the story of a character named V, a mercenary/outlaw looking for the key to immortality. Players seem excited about the game and are interested in seeing how unique each playthrough of the game can be. However, like all big games with a lot of hype, there are many speculations that Cyberpunk will not be able to live up to all the expectations. Games like Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2 remind me of the situation that Cyberpunk developers are in. RDR 2, like Cyberpunk 2077, is an open-world role-playing game that emphasizes customization and survival (eating, sleeping, and hunting in the game to increase health/stats). Even though RDR 2 is a great game and is respected as such, many fans did not like the many nuances that made the game seem alive. They did not like having to micromanage the variety of day to day activities like eating and sleeping in the game because they felt as if it was time-consuming. People want a game that feels real but doesn’t inconvenience them with real-life mechanics. Hopefully, Cyberpunk will give fans the game that they want, while also keeping things fresh and innovative. If you are interested in seeing what Cyberpunk 2077 will look like, check out the Deep Dive video and look for the game when it releases on April 16, 2020.

https://www.cyberpunk.net/us/en/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidthier/2018/10/29/the-5-biggest-problems-with-red-dead-redemption-2/#1738495d15d4

Current Issues In Media Management

Author: Chris Cole

Will Gamers continue stopping at GameStop?

Cyberpunk 2077; Was the deep dive too deep?