The State of Gaming in 2022 with Jason Kapadia & Jag Sharma - Episode 32
We've come so far from the days of Pac-Man and Pong, but has gaming lost its way?
Video games bring us entertainment, escapism, challenge and social connection in equal measure, particularly as their scale and budget grows, but Jag Sharma and Jason Kapadia have some huge gripes with the industry.
On this games-focused episode of Disconnected, we dive into the rich history of retro games, opportunities in the space, the rampant mobile gaming industry, and what needs to be done to fix video gaming’s biggest bugbears.
This episode of Disconnected covers:
What attracts people to the video game industry as consumers and businesses
Why gaming is so absurdly expensive and aggressively monetised
Mobile games leading the industry in practices both good and malicious
The biggest selling consoles throughout the decades
The future of gaming
Episode Highlights:
“Each one of these generations was a real leap in graphics performance, and machine performance would enable new styles of gameplay.” - 12:15 - Jason Kapadia
“Now I’ve got a family and a mortgage, my gaming time has crashed, and when I play it feels like there’s a guilt that I’m not working.” - 17:00 - Jason Kapadia
“You get a new game, pop it into the machine, then you’re sat waiting for a 5GB patch. It seems you’re not rewarded for getting a game day 1 like you used to, because it’s likely to be buggy.” - 21:05 - Jason Kapadia
“Gaming today is just too expensive. The consoles are more expensive than ever because sales are down across the board. ” - 22:25 - Jag Sharma
“You’re rewarded for not caring. If you buy a game on launch day, you just bought the worst version of that game.” - 26:25 - Jag Sharma
“All these games have to have a sequel, it’s become like Hollywood. They want a safe bet, so they want to release games they know will attract a certain audience.” - 28:05 - Jag Sharma
“If you’re in a casino, you can leave. But with mobile games, they’re always with you, bugging you with goodies and enticing you to come back.” - 32:45 - Jason Kapadia
“Mobile games have borrowed from the tactics of casinos, with the satisfying, addictive sound design that releases dopamine. ” - 34:00 - Jag Sharma
“Nintendo has clearly focused on experiences since the Wii, more so than having the most powerful console, so there’ll always be a place for Nintendo as long as they continue to innovate.” - 39:25 - Jag Sharma
Links & references:
Jason Kapadia:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonkapadia/
https://www.instagram.com/jasonkapadia/
Jag Sharma:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jagsharma
https://www.instagram.com/jagsharma/