The thing with Activision/Blizzard is that their financial reports make me think it's mostly Blizzard making the profits.

Unfortunately for Activision, Ubisoft doesn't rely on only 1 or 2 series. Even when the Imagine series sees a decline, they have other titles to make up for it. The Rabbids games are still a sure hit, Tom Clancy shows great legs on consoles, and then they've got games like My Fitness Coach, Shaun White, and Puzzler Collection. These games likely have very low budgets but make a lot of money. And also, Imagine games are slow burners anyways. They won't all sell as well and/or as quickly as Imagine: Babies. But the main difference is that Activision milked and killed one of the biggest series of the generation (Guitar Hero) until it was smaller than its direct competitor, even when it used to outsell its direct competitor somewhere around 3:1. Activision supporting all the consoles with their games doesn't make them a winner. In many cases, it just means they want as much money as possible.

Capcom, Ubisoft, Epic and Activision

I would have to agree with the general consensus on Activision, short term success. Unless they can find some way to get past the million rehashes of GH.

I don't think any 3rd party is doing too excellently this gen. Far too many ignoring the Wii and wasting time and money making big HD that may or may not give them returns. At first I thought it was funny that no one even mentioned Square-Enix at all, and then I remembered that they wasted all of their time on FFXIII and have released next to nothing so far this gen. They need to get their act together. I hope all the time and money that they spent on FXIII at least makes a good game. I mean, it is one of my most anticpated games, but come on, 3+ years of development is a bit ridiculous.


I would probably say Capcom is the biggest winner this gen, for being the most stable. Resident Evil, reviving Street Fighter, Mega Man, and even making good new IPs like Dead Rising. I would say they are looking pretty good at the moment. Although maybe I maybe am a bit biased because outside of RPG developers and Nintendo, Capcom is one of the few developer's games that I consistently enjoy. From SNES to this gen, pretty consistently top notch.

I have a feeling that outside of Modern Warfare. The Call of Duty name is going to turn to shit because of Activision's release it yearly plan. This will hold especially true if the next CoD is set back in WWII

Top 3, in order...

EPIC Games: Despite some early bumps in the road, Unreal Engine 3 has really become the ubiquitous go-to engine for developers to license.  It's pretty much everywhere now, and has more than taken over the position that Renderware held last cycle.  Additionally Epic entered into a sweetheart publishing deal with Microsoft that's resulted in the gritty and acclaimed Gears of War, far and away the best selling new IP on the HD platforms this generation.  They've really become a powerhouse in both tools/support and the strength of their own games in recent years.

Level-5: After hitting the big time with Dragon Quest co-development in 2004, L5 smartly reinvested that capital with an eye at becoming publisher themselves. By going against the grain and by focusing on new ideas that make sense to modern game audiences, they've already managed that with the worldwide success brain-puzzling Professor Layton, and have other surefire hits in the wings like the kids soccer-RPG Inazuma Eleven, the Gundam meets Poke-clone Danboard Senki and the high profile collaboration with the renowned Studio Ghibli, Nunokuni.  They're one of the unique success stories coming out of Japan these days, and even more surprising they've managed it entirely on the back of new brands and new markets.

Valve Software: Having cultivated Steam as an empire (and acknowledged platform) unto itself, Valve been on the forefront of also being a PC developer cultivating a new dedicated console audience.  The Orange Box first really brought unparalleled value to gamers this gen (not to mention the most innovating fps/puzzler in recent memory, Portal) and Left4Dead was the sleeper hit of last year and has grown into a AAA series itself already.  Valve seems to be be making all the right moves today, both at home on PC and branching into a new equally dedicated 360 audience.

...honorable mentions go out to Blizzard Entertainment, Bethesda Softworks, Capcom, Ubisoft, Bioware, Infinity Ward, Hudson Soft, Armor Project, 2D Boy and thatgamecompany.

SQUARE-ENIX

& activision

ubisoft ftw

Activision. GH and COD sold massively.

In terms of my personally ranking Namco! Ace Combat > YOU!

Activision-Blizzard...and they are drunk with power!