Now Playing: Grizzly Bear
Thanks to Johan for rescuing me from a rare case of writer's block. My gaming expertise petered out some time round the era of Galaga and Elevator Action.
It's safe to say that, even at their peak, comics could not compare to the $57 billion video game industry. It's more in the vicinity of $700 million, which is still alright when you consider how many times the death knell has been prematurely rung on the medium but scale.
That being the case, game creators also stand to make greater profits than comics creators. Though, balanced against that is the fact that a much larger team works on the top line games now. And they spend a longer time in development; there's more money exchanging hands in the chain from developer to final consumer here than in any comparable commercial artform, with the possible exception of motion picture production. But there's no accounting for taste so let's move on.
Gamewriters and artists are an 'increasingly essential component' to the finished product/artwork but are they work for hire? Well, they have a union.
Games designers and gamers are nonetheless enamored of comic book concepts and, no doubt, comic sales will be fleetingly boosted by each comic-based game that becomes popular. And why wouldn't the people who work on a game project take an interest in their 2-D compatriots.
Common to both media is the fact that yer basic mass produced item (count the print run) at its final stages is wrapped in plastic and put on a shelf. Every so often, regardless of the development costs or time invested, a Gameboy game will end up with the same ugly Texta markdown - on the plastic bag if you're lucky - as the cheaper and less widespread comic book that went off the boil, or was overstocked.
