Rhindle said:
That is just naive and misinformed. The rise of EA is a major factor but only one of many:
1. Activision has turned itself around and developed a multiple strong franchises like THPS and Spiderman.
2. Microsoft was not a factor previously and now is a major player in console publishing.
3. Take2/Rockstar: They may be a one-trick pony, but boy is it a good trick.
4. Ubisoft has transformed itself from a mediocre bit player to being arguably the finest publisher in the business.
5. THQ has done very well with licensed games and lately has started producing quality titles like FSW.
6. Smaller publishers like Bethesda and Blizzard have built a name for themselves.
7. The movie studios have gotten in the game and are now a major force. Vivendi Universal are a major publisher and the others are now looking to follow suit.
I agree with all the points you made, the market is just more than EA, the thing is though, EA has almost a monthly hit dominating the charts, while the rest have scattered success (some monster though like GTA and Halo).
Activision and UbiSoft are 100% legitimate contenders and although EA doesn't need to fear them, they seem to be under good management that will keep them vying for 3rd party sales and are easily EA's most stable 3rd party challengers.
THQ is great, but IMO there is an overreliance on kids GBA titles (and some non-kiddy titles from Sega and Microsoft).
You are right about Take-Two, but I have a feeling at some point the GTA thing might start getting tired (maybe even starting this fall), but they'll have stuff like Sega Sports and budget stuff to help them out.
All-in-all though, the market has grown for Western 3rd parties, but because of the complexity involved in today's games, has put the agenda on basically 4-5 major players (and really, when you look at the sales charts it's basically EA/Activions/UbiSoft, with THQ and Take-Two doing great but have less stable lineups IMO).
Many 3rd parties are either down in the dumps (like Midway and LucasArts), or are now bankrupt (3DO and Acclaim). Because of the consolidation and fiernce competition in 3d-gaming, so many developers and publishers have disappeared. Acclaim and Midway closed down some great studios (including San Fransisco Rush developer Atari Games) in during their financially difficult times.
IMO, Western games are bigger, but the market belongs to fewer companies.