99 Cent Games Are Killing the Industry, Epic Games Says

Epic Games President Mike Capps has recently weighed in on the state of the gaming industry and how the advent of small, lightweight games that cost just 99 cents for mobile platforms like the iOS or Android, are killing regular $60 games.

The gaming industry is changing dramatically, and will continue to do so in the next few years, at least according to Capps, who says that it's definitely a tricky period for any company involved in the industry, especially veteran game development studios like Epic Games.

“We have not been this uncertain about what's coming next in the games industry since Epic's been around for 20 years. We're at such an inflection point. Will there be physical distribution in 10 years or even five? Will anyone care about the next console generation? What's going on in PC? Can you make money on PC if it's not a connected game? What's going on in mobile?”

Capps goes on to say that not even the next generation of devices are certain to be successful, as lots of people are quite happy with the current lineup and are even trying new things like social or mobile gaming.

But the biggest threat to the gaming industry, at least according to the Epic boss, are cheap games made for mobile platforms like the iPhone or iPad, which get customers used to paying just a fraction of money for their interactive entertainment.

"If there's anything that's killing us [in the traditional games business] it's dollar apps," he lamented. "How do you sell someone a $60 game that's really worth it ... They're used to 99 cents. As I said, it's an uncertain time in the industry. But it's an exciting time for whoever picks the right path and wins."

Epic Games has been getting into the mobile gaming business with the release of Infinity Blade for the iOS, which, in the midst of many 99 cent apps, costs a hefty $6.

Capps' complaints back up previous statements coming from Nintendo, who is trying to distance its own portable platforms, like the DS or 3DS, as well as their games, from mobile phones and their apps.