The State of Games 2012

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The State of Games 2012

By Polygon Staff on Jul 09, 2012 at 8:52a

What is the state of the games industry? It's a question we're asked regularly not just by colleagues but friends, family, and acquaintances whose knowledge of video games begins and ends at Angry Birds.

The State of Games series is our effort to present a comprehensive, yet concise take on the people who make, sell, and buy video games today. From developers to gamers, indies to AAAs, the editorial staff packaged must-know info into easily digestible features. And for those lovers of Angry Birds, we covered mobile games, too.

We also paired each section with a case study, providing an opportunity for those with first-hand experience in the industry to share their two cents. People like indie game designer Nathan Vella and Epic Games vice president Mark Rein speak to the state of the iPhone and next-gen consoles. We didn't just cover where games are today, but where they are going tomorrow.

This is an in-depth and accessible look at what The Economist says will be "the fastest-growing and most exciting form of mass media over the coming decade." This is Polygon's The State of Games 2012.

11 months Ago 10 Comments

The state of games: State of the current generation

WRITTEN by Justin McElroy on July 09, 2012

This is a bonus addition to our State of Games feature.The original five-part series is available here. — Ed.

Waiting to Exhale is not only my favorite cinematic performance by Angela Bassett, it's also the best way I've found to describe the state of the current generation of consoles. They've been the vanguard of the industry for six or seven years depending on the box, and the strain is starting to show.

We all know the next generation is coming, but Sony and Microsoft continue to play a game of silent chicken, each waiting for the other to flinch and announce its next system. Until...

11 months Ago 11 Comments

The state of games: State of the next generation

WRITTEN by Arthur Gies on July 09, 2012

This is a bonus addition to our State of Games feature.The original five-part series is available here. — Ed.

In some ways, the next generation is already here.

If you want to see the kinds of things next-gen games are going to do as a rule, rather than an exception, check out videos of last year's Crysis 2 running in DirectX 11 on PC. While Unreal Engine 4 made an impressive public debut at this year's E3, and Square Enix wowed with their own Luminous Studio engine, the big features in both have been part of Crytek's engine since earlier this year.

Future worries

Regardless of which...

11 months Ago 30 Comments

The state of games: State of development

WRITTEN by Polygon Staff on July 06, 2012

This is the final part of a five-part series on the state of games, written by the editors of Polygon, following Thursday's "State of gamers," Wednesday's "State of mobile," Tuesday's "State of indies," and Monday's "State of AAA." The entire series will be re-published in total on Monday. - Ed.

11 months Ago 45 Comments

The state of games: State of gamers

WRITTEN by Polygon Staff on July 05, 2012

This is the fourth part of a five-part series on the state of games, written by the editors of Polygon, following Wednesday's "State of mobile," Tuesday's "State of indies," and Monday's "State of AAA." Part five will be published tomorrow. The entire series will be re-published in total on Monday. - Ed.

11 months Ago 109 Comments

The state of games: State of mobile

WRITTEN by Polygon Staff on July 04, 2012

This is the third part of a five-part series on the state of games, written by the editors of Polygon, following Monday's "State of AAA" and Tuesday's "State of indies." Parts four and five will be published later this week. The entire series will be re-published in total on Monday. - Ed

11 months Ago 21 Comments

The state of games: State of indies

WRITTEN by Polygon Staff on July 03, 2012

This is the second part of a five-part series on the state of games, written by the editors of Polygon, following yesterday's "State of AAA." Parts three through five will be published separately each day this week. The entire series will be re-published in total on Monday. - Ed.

11 months Ago 157 Comments

The state of games: State of AAA

WRITTEN by Polygon Staff on July 02, 2012

This is the first part of a five-part series on the state of games, written by the editors of Polygon. Parts two through five will be published separately each day this week. The entire series will be re-published in total next Monday. - Ed.