In my last blog - I touched on the power of the games industry and how they are now shaping the way that consumer enjoy their multi-media experiences at home.
This has been a long hard struggle for these companies and have seen many peaks and troughs over the decades to try and get to the point where we are today.
At the same time games retailers and resellers are enjoying the boom and bust with stores trying to give more sq ft space over to this continuing dominate format. Just as they did in the late 80's with Nintendo, Sega and Atari - 2008 sees Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony all competing in this area.
One point to note of course is the longevity of Nintendo - always ridiculed among the games geeks as a kids platform - how could any real gamer take them seriously when their lead character was an Italian Plumber?
So as Christmas fast approaches retailers such as HMV, Zavvi, Amazon, Play will all look forward to another bumper Games Christmas - and the hope that there is sufficient stock of both hardware and software (one of the key drivers in keeping demand and price steady - is to create the demand with drip feeds of stock and availability - does Nintendo actually think that we believe that after two decades of manufacturing games hardware and software that they still do not know how to keep up with customer demand?? ) 
Recent figures across entertainment retail pointed to a buoyant games market that helped them achieve better than predicted results - especially in the current retail climate.
But for how much longer?
It has been a bug bear of all the games manufacturers past and present that retail although good for helping them move hardware and software titles - were also a distraction to them - as they were expected to keep all the retailers happy on stock availability, cost price, promotional activity, demo units etc... then there is the strict street dates that games manufacturers have tried to maintain - to ensure that the smaller independent games retailers had a chance against the might of HMV or Virgin - I use Virgin in this context - as many of the smaller independent games stores passed during the "sticky" phase between Playstation 1 & 2 - while the rest faltered between Playstation 2 & 3 and GameCube to Wii - as I mentioned earlier - the games market is tough and needs constant innovation and direction to keep it ahead - not too far ahead though as they also realise that they can't expect the parents of the gamers to upgrade every 2 years with price tags between £200 - £600!
So why the warning to retailers? I know from being within the games industry, that many years ago their goal was to by-pass the "arrogant" retailers who "demanded blood" and ship direct to the consumer - but there was little internet back then - and broadband speeds of 20mbps were but a pipe dream.
Now - we see that broadband is nearly everywhere - we can play with very little buffering or interruption form fellow gamers around the world and share an enjoy that experience with others (proving to the geeks that it wasn't just you playing until 3.00am) and this means that if you can access a games hub where you can play against others - then why not access a distribution hub that delivers new games to the user?
It has already happened with Nintendo they have Virtual Console - an area where past games can be downloaded for credits - such classics as Super Mario Bros 3 sit along side your virtual library with Sonic the Hedgehog (something back in 1992 was unheard of!!) 
and recently Nintendo launched the Wii Ware where games developers can release direct to the consumer and avoid the headaches of trying to get to all the retailers - this way you now have access directly to the consumers who actually have the console!
Xbox have their Live Marketplace where as well as games they also download movies and music to the consumer (one of Bill Gates dreams was to be in the living rooms of families around the world - and he's getting there - at any cost!) Point in fact that Mötley Crüe's recent Saints of Los Angeles sold more downloads on XBox Live than it did on iTunes in the US - however going back to my last blog - this was of course due to the fact that it was available as a new track for Guitar Hero rather than download the latest Mötley Crüe track
Playstation (al last...) are beginning their online journey with Playstation Network - where PS3'ers and PSP'ers can start to enjoy downloads and community aspects immersed experiences with their favourite game such as extra tracks for Gran Turismo 5 maybe?? or maybe some Sony Music??
Either way - why would you want to put the middle man (the retailer) in the way - where you are at the mercy of inexperienced staff, stroppy staff, wrong messaging and price wars among the supermarkets and retailers - compared to creating the experience, tailored for the specific game, price depending on the offer - £40 for a game is a lot especially if you just shelled out £280 for the console you don't really want to start shelling out even more money for games?
That's where the console manufacturers with their Live Marketplace, Network and Wii Ware can, if they want to, drip feed the game to you on a pay as you play basis - that way you could download the first "x" number of levels or tracks for £4.99 - and then deliver more as they progress for a fee! Yes the overall game in comparison may well be more expensive if the entire game is to be completed - say £60 rather than the £40 - but then how many of the newer family gamers actually want to finish and complete the game in a weekend?? This way spreading the cost depending on your gaming ability makes much more sense. There is then the episodic games experiences where taking part in games on a set day / week will start to penetrate.
So for HMV, Play, Amazon etc.. could this be their swansong? Will this be the final Christmas that they can rely on games software to back up their bottom line? Where will they be without this in the coming years if not next year?
However just one final area to consider - how, where is all your virtual console / games being stored and will this be backward compatible in the future??
Maybe the future lies somewhere in between - and see a hybrid between Sony Bravia & SonyPlaystation4 to create the Sony Bravia Experience that has Full HD, BluRay, Wi-Fi / Ethernet connectivity, output to PSP or other media devices, Playstation4....? Now that would be cool
But I'm a big Nintendo fan (incase you hadn't guessed) and after so long in the industry I would not rule them out of anything - they have Wii, DS lite and the superb Virtual Console & Wii Ware - if they want to go for the next generation full entertainment system - I'm sure they could - I just don't know if they really want to!
Keep watching this one - my money, as always, in on the little Italian plumber!
