IGNORE THE TITLE!

I can't correct it, but it should really read, "GTA IV's high budget may hurt hardcore gaming more than it helps, assuming some developers thinking bigger budgets are the best way to please the hardcore crowd.

This has nothing to do with the game itself.* Also has nothing to do with the reviews (plenty have gone there already).

It has to do with the cost. You cannot do a truly hardcore game with $100 million. You need some mainstream appeal. Fortunately, this series has it (I have all 5 of the PS2 GTA games). Yet what about others? If this expense trend continues, hardcore gamers will be in even worse shape than with the Wii around.

Why? Well hardcore gamers demand the most effort and production values, but of course that means the games cost more and more. That means the games need more mainstream appeal than hardcore appeal to ensure the costs will be made back.

Now the very nature of the GTA games has that built in (unless the simple nature of the sandbox has changed this time around). Yet other series may not have that. If anyone was worried that the Wii would dumb down games, try developers who insist on hardcore series now appealing to the lowest common denominator just to reduce the risk.

Of course I put the words "may" and "hypothetical" in the title. That's just what this is. It's also likely that developers will see GTA as a special case, and that unless the series is GTA, Final Fantasy, Gran Turismo, Halo, Super Mario**, etc., it's better to have reasonable budgets. See Shenmue.

Anyway, the real point is that this game may seem like a vindication of HD and hardcore gaming, but if the vindication cost that much money, it may not be a lasting one.

Finally, this is not to knock the damn game. I hear it's pretty good. This is just about any predictions on its effects on the gaming industry.

* I don't have it, or even a 7th gen system so I'm not going to discuss the content or quality here.

** Not that Nintendo would actually spend that much on a Mario game, but that it would be less of a risk than, say Fire Emblem (unless Nintendo was using most that $100 million for marketing).

Shame on you for bring another topic involving GTA... j/k

Well, so far we have heard about high budget games (Killzone 2, MGS4, probably FF), and so far most around here agree that the most wanted sequels will do fine, but thats the end of it, there is no safe risk for games like Killzone or another high budged game which is not a sequel of a good gaming series...

It will be interesting to see the market in the next two years...

Three threads on the front page alone that are all saying the same thing.

So you bought a Wii, think it's the saviour of console gaming and then the best rated game of the generation gets released on another console. Get over it. You're all giving Nintendo fans a bad name.

You can keep your endless Mario clones if the cheapness of a game matters to you. Us HD console owners can enjoy the expensive games. 

"I don't have it, or even a 7th gen system" (that includes the Wii, unless you think it isn't 7th gen, in which case, you are the fanboy)

"I have all 5 of the PS2 GTA games"

Sameless fails for not really reading the OP.

Fair enough, I skim-read it. Just getting tired with everyone trying to hate on this game recently when most of them haven't even played it.

Very few games will cost as much as GTA4, mainly because the publishers just won't let the the developers have the money. Rockstar was given huge amounts of money because it was guaranteed to sell ridiculous amounts. I can't think of an unpopular hardcore game that costs anywhere near 100 million apart from Killzone 2, which seems to be funded just for fanboy graphics wars.

So, anti-Wii week has ended, anti-GTA IV week has begun?

GTA IV probably is an excellent game for the PS3, Xbox 360, and soon also for PC. That's it. No more, no less. Will it have any consequences for gaming in general? Nope.

Mario is also a high-production hardcore game with lots of casual appeal. Same case.

Now people, please stop these idiotic threads about GTA IV, you're making yourself look like fools.

i agree with all of the above apart from the 1st poster!

gta4 is out now and enjoy it its a great game

1. You didn't read the OP, if you think this was a thread against the game.

2. This proves you didn't, because I state that it is likely the game won't have any effect.

1. I read the OP. I know you didn't bash the game itself, but you're one of the many people that tries to spin GTA IV in any negative way possible. "GTA IV is thát good, that it's a threat to the PS360!" C'mon, you're better than that.

2. Why the hell did you create this thread for than? "Hey guys, I have this theory, and it goes like this. Blablabla. Oh, and my theory is highly unlikely, but yeah, ehh, wait, what?"

This may come across rude, but I have nothing against you. It's just that I'm getting really annoyed at all these people here trying to associate negativity with GTA IV. It makes no sense to do so, so please don't do it.

The OP is about game budgets, and not GTA4.

As far as game budgets go, I think the market can now handle it. The gaming industry has grown to a point where we have enough people to support a 100 million dollar game.

I know you have not played GTA4, but if you had, you would realize where the budget went, and I would say most of it was do to the level of detail put into a sandbox world. A game like Gears of War 2 does not need that level of detail, and thus would never be expected to cost that much in order to produce the same level of production quality.

I think the industry is growing at a respectable clip. In 10 years, we could see 500 million dollar games, and all I can say is I hope I am here to play them :)