作者：Shaun Chatman

相比于几年以前，现在的游戏行业已经发生天翻地覆的变化了。这种变化是多种原因导致的。如智能手机的普及、Facebook及其游戏的流行和游戏机的更新换代等。此外，玩家自身和对游戏的要求也变化了。面对这一系列变化，游戏开发者的未来市场在哪里？

独立游戏的崛起

minecraft(from gamasutra)

导致人们对游戏的看法改变的一个重要原因是，独立游戏的崛起，无论是在PC还是在平板领域。独立游戏是由无雄厚财力支持的个人或小工作室开发的作品。然而，许多独立游戏非常出色，很快就在玩家当中流行开来。比如，在独立网络游戏方面，《我的世界》和《Orcs Must Die》都非常热门。而在独立平板游戏方面，《粘粘世界》和《邪恶联盟》也相当受欢迎。

社交性

游戏深度绑定了社交媒体平台。看看现在的Zynga游戏。确实，它们让人恼火，怎么有那么多好友邀请呢？但是，它们成功了——这才是关键。极其地成功，到了让人愤怒的地步。事实上，大约有25%到35%的Facebook用户同时也是Zynga游戏的玩家。

游戏与社交相结合的模式太管用了，以至于平板游戏也套用了这个模式。许多平板游戏与社交媒体也有不同程度的融合（游戏邦注：其实就是要求你通过社交媒体帐号登录）。尽管许多用户讨厌这种组合，然而，作为开发者，你必须看到什么才是趋势和走向，而今天的潮流就是社交。

平板用户

tablet(from gamasutra)

显然不能说所有平板用户都是一样的。但游戏开发者必须知道，绝大多数平板用户仍然存在共性。平板用户总是会在这个时候或那个时候需要网络连接，无论他们是在家使用无线网络还是在星巴克使用免费Wi-Fi。

网络连接得越频繁，平板用户玩的在线游戏（如MMO）就越多。许多（尽管不是全部）平板用户经常是边走边玩。务必记住：如果游戏不提供随时保存功能，很可能导致活跃玩家人数减少。

电脑用户

desktop computer(from gamasutra)

还是那句话，并非所有使用相同设备的人都具有类似的游戏兴趣、习惯或个性。与平板用户相比，电脑用户（或主机用户）可能更喜欢对显卡和性能要求更高的游戏。虽然平板能吸引大量休闲用户，但电脑却是硬核玩家的首选设备。

针对电脑的在线游戏绝不可能过时，比如《魔兽世界》就是一款一直很赚钱的网络游戏。然而，开发者还应该记住，这些游戏的玩家总是很忠于当前所玩的游戏。

付费游戏

网络社交游戏和平板游戏都要赚钱。现在有三个选项：你可以让玩家先付钱买游戏；你可以让其他公司在游戏中做广告，你收广告费；你可以通过游戏中的微交易向玩家收费（即免费模式）。网络游戏和平板游戏都存在这三种模式。

1、平板用户平均花费3.29美元至4.65美元购买付费应用。苹果iPad应用商店中有23%的应用是免费的，而Android Marketplace中有57%的应用是免费的。

2、免费应用有广告、微交易，或二者兼有。

3、游戏内微交易事实上是手机平台中增长最快的收益来源。

现在，不能因为你一般不会付费购买网络社交游戏就认为你不会为它花钱。如果只看最流行的社交网络游戏平台Facebook，你必须考虑到：

1、Facebook上一直有广告，甚至游戏中有也广告。这些广告的收入通常不是给开发者的，但仍会惹恼玩家。

2、有些游戏还有公司赞助。

3、此外，它们也有微交易。事实上，社交游戏玩家在游戏内微交易的每月平均花费大约是25.2美元。Facebook当然要从中抽取少量提成，考虑到Facebook游戏用户多达1500万，但仍然是一个稳定的收入来源。

新平台

还应该注意到，对于游戏开发者而言，每一个游戏新平台的诞生也意味着新机遇的出现。这是件好事。几年以前，触屏玩法还是不可能的事，而现在已经变成主流了。开发者必须适应不断革命的技术。因此，开发者设计可以考虑设计跨平台游戏，至少为了体验。

tablet user(from gamasutra)

游戏的未来在哪里？

游戏的未来一直在变化。然而，诚实一点地说，对画面要求高的玩家不会为了平板而放弃电脑。在线游戏和社交游戏不仅现在非常流行，以后也会继续流行下去，毕竟人们喜欢和朋友一起玩游戏。

在游戏中社交已经成为游戏文化的一部分了，而且短时间内不会发生变化。然而，平板游戏仍然处于婴儿期。随着行业成长和演变，它可能会进化出另一个出乎我们意料的形式。你认为游戏市场最终会朝哪个方向发展？（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译，拒绝任何不保留版权的转载，如需转载请联系：游戏邦）

The Future Market for Professional Game Developers: Online Games or Tablet Games?

by Shaun Chatman

The gaming industry is a completely different world today than it was just a few years ago. There are a lot of things that have factored into this, from smart phones to the popularity of Facebook, and the games on it. In addition, there are new consoles, gamers are looking for new types of games, and the gamer profile has changed. So, what does the future hold for game developers?

The Rise of Indie Games

One really important factor that’s changing the way people look at gaming, both on the computer and on the tablet, is the rise of indie games. These games are made by individuals or small studios.

They are not backed by hundreds of thousands of dollars. However, many indie games have great story lines and become extremely popular, extremely fast. Online games like Minecraft and Orcs Must Die are indie games that have become very popular. On the flip side, World of Goo and League of Evil are popular tablet indie games.

Consider the Social Aspect

There has been a big push in gaming for integration into social media platforms. Take a look at all the Zynga games today. Sure, they’re irritating, and who likes to get all of those requests from friends? But here’s the thing – they’re successful. Extremely successful, and kind of annoyingly so. In fact, about 25 to 35 percent of all Facebook users play these games.

The model has become so popular that it has been taken to tablet gaming as well. Many tablet games offer varying degrees of social media integration (some, in fact, require you to log in via social media account). Many users find the social integration to be highly irritating. However, as a developer, it’s important to understand what the trends are, and today the trend is social.

Taking a Look at Tablet Users

Saying that all tablet users are alike is like saying that all homeowners are alike. It’s simply not true. However, understanding a few things about the majority of tablet owners is important for
game developers. Those who use tablets are going to need an Internet connection at some point or another, whether they have T-Mobile unlimited 4g data, or they’re using the free Wi-Fi at Starbucks.

The more constant the connection, the more they’re able to play games that require that connection (like MMOs, for example). Many (though not all) tablet users are frequently on the go. Keeping this in mind is important; having long games that don’t include frequent save points is likely to decrease the number of active users.

Taking a Look at Desktop Computer Users

Image via Flickr by Jiri Brozovsky

Again, not everyone who uses the same device is going to have similar gaming interests, style, or personalities. A user that is on a desktop computer (or a console), however, is likely to prefer games that require a better graphics card and capabilities than someone on a tablet. While tablets are attracting many of the casual users, the desktop is still next to none in terms of being the instrument for hardcore gamers.

And online games specifically designed for desktops are by no means failing — the World of Warcraft, for instance, is one of the highest-grossing games of all time. However, it’s also useful for
developers to remember that these games’ users aren’t nearly as mobile when they’re playing them.

Paying for the Games

Internet social games and tablet games both need to make money somehow. Today there are three options. You have the user pay for the game up front, you pay for the game with ad space that you sell to other companies, or you charge the user for micro-transactions through the game. Both internet gaming and tablet gaming have these options down to a science.

Tablet users spend on average between $3.29-4.65 for their paid apps. The Apple iPad store has 23 percent of its apps free, while the Android Marketplace has 57 percent of its apps free.

Free apps have ads, micro-transactions, or both.

In-game micro-transactions, in fact, are the fastest-growing source of revenue for mobile platforms.

Now, just because you don’t generally spend money up front for an Internet social game doesn’t mean that you aren’t going to spend money on it. If you only look at Facebook games, which are the most popular social network games, there are a few considerations:

There are ads running on Facebook at all times, even while gaming. The proceeds of these ads generally don’t benefit the developers, but they’re still irritating to users.

Some of these games also have corporate sponsorship that help pay for the games

In addition to that, they also have micro-transactions. In fact, the average social gamer spends about $25.20 per month on their in-game micro transactions. Of course, Facebook gets a cut of this, but that’s still pretty steady income when you multiply it by the 15 million Facebook users.

Different Platforms Open New Possibilities

It’s important to note that every new platform that opens for gaming also opens new possibilities for game developers. This is a great thing, and can open a lot of doors. The touchscreen experience is something that wasn’t possible even a few years ago, and today it’s mainstream. Being able to adapt to technology’s ever-expanding possibilities is important for developers. Because of this, it’s a good idea for developers to design cross-platform a few times, at least for the experience.

So Where Does That Leave the Future of Gaming?

The future of gaming is always changing. However, let’s be honest; graphics-loving gamers won’t be leaving their desktops in droves for tablets. Online and social games are extremely popular and they’ll continue to be that way, and people like to play games with their friends.

That has become a part of gaming culture now, and it’s not going to change any time soon. However, tablet gaming is still in its infancy. As the industry grows and evolves, it’s likely to develop into yet another form we wouldn’t have anticipated. In what direction do you think the gaming market will eventually go? (source:gamasutra)