Crowdgaming: The role of crowdsourcing in the video games industry

Internet has changed video games so much, that it is almost impossible to think of the evolution of the role of players in the last 10 years or so. Nowadays, almost every user with a good Internet connection is capable to determine the future of its favourite game. In other words, every player can be a developer and a publisher at the same time. Developer, because he truly can participate at the development of a game, for example by sharing his opinion on the testimonial needed for a cover. Publisher, because he can even fund the game, helping a developer to reach the funds needed. This is gaming crowdsourcing, and it is shaping new dynamics in the video games industry. Video games are a matter of passion and love. It is a market whose users are loyal to the developers, franchises, and consoles they love the most. The video games industry includes such a variety in its mechanisms, that is possible to think of it as a long tail market, populated by prosumers, in which triple Aaa games and indie productions share the same space thanks to the digital delivery. This book tries to investigate these new dynamics by using examples of games that succeeded through crowdsourcing. It is a topic that deserves an in-depth analysis, because the gaming crowdsourcing it is capable to move not just money, but also passion and dreams – and without them, video games would not make sense at all.