Quote Originally Posted by Spino
Sims 2 outselling Rome Total War is akin to when some populist piece of garbage movie outperforms a cinematic masterpiece at the box office. Sure the former will always outperform the latter in overall sales but years from now who is going recall 'gems' like Independence Day as being an all time classic?
There's a very important difference between a great film and a great game: The film can still make money 30 years later, with little or no changes. Certainly there's no need to go back and re-shoot the flick; at most one has to re-master and transfer.

With computer games, on the other hand, there's no real way for a classic to make money 30 years on. People probably can't run the game at that late date. Sure, we all may have fond memories of Sid Meier's Pirates!, but there's nobody buying it today, so it's not making any money for anyone. And even if you could find a copy, the odds are good you wouldn't be able to run it.

So game companies can't relax and count on brilliant classics -- they have to make their money Right Now, or forever hold their peace. The prevalence of warez makes this even more urgent. Making a classic is great for their rep, and it builds loyalty and buzz, but it means zilch to their bottom line after the first couple of years of sales.

With other art forms there is a defined and proven way to make money from classics. With computer games, the closest analogy is when a company re-makes an old title, which involves more work than making the original. Witness Doom 3 and the upcoming re-hash of Pirates. They're not dusting off a classic and putting a voice commentary on the DVD, they're literally re-engineering from the ground up.

Frankly, I'm glad CA is raking in the bucks, and I disagree with posters who think this will turn them into tawdry corporate shills who ignore quality and support. Money can do a lot of things to a company, but as Blizzard demonstrated in its day, moulah doesn't have to make you an uncaring sleazebag.