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Will Portal change the game industry?


Is shorter really sweeter? If Portal's success is any indication, then most definitely. Over at GIgaOM, Wagner James Au is wondering if the 2007 game of the year may signal a change in perspective for the video game industry as whole.

Specifically, Au looks at the business side of Portal, and reasons that the game's profit margin must have been incredibly high, given its short development cycle and genesis as a DigiPen student project.

Ideally, Au sees Portal setting an exciting new industry precedent: small, low-budget mainstream games with short development cycles, taking risks that the multi-million dollar titles literally can't afford to take. If it makes money, and appeals to the masses, then there's no feasible reason why this can't happen. We'll keep our fingers crossed for the revolution.

Tags: portal, valve

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